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3M Company and through its subsidiary division 3M ESPEaggressively marketed and sold its Lava (TM) Ultimate Restorativeto dentists around the country. Their machine failed at analarming rate because of the manner in which the crown flexes whenunder pressure and its failure to accept affixation throughrecommended bonding or cementation procedures.

3M Company and through its subsidiary division 3M ESPEaggressively marketed and sold its Lava(TM) Ultimate Restorativeto dentists around the country. Their machine failed at analarming rate because of the manner in which the crown flexes whenunder pressure and its failure to accept affixation throughrecommended bonding or cementation procedures.

3M Company and through its subsidiary division 3M ESPEaggressively marketed and sold its Lava(TM) Ultimate Restorativeto dentists around the country. Their machine failed at analarming rate because of the manner in which the crown flexes whenunder pressure and its failure to accept affixation throughrecommended bonding or cementation procedures.

"(1) all persons with addresses within the State ofCalifornia; (2) who were sent a written communication byDefendants; (3) which was the same or similar to exhibit 1 of thiscomplaint; (4) to recover a consumer debt; (5) which was notreturned undelivered by the United States Postal Service; (6)within one year prior to the filing of the initial Complaint inthis action."

The Court also directs Plaintiff to submit a status report of hisprogress on the case by September 19, 2016, and another report byNovember 14, 2016. The Court continues the motion for defaultjudgment to January 9, 2017, at 10:00 a.m.

Defendants are traders of supranational, sub-sovereign, and agencybonds denominated in various currencies and allegedly colludedwith each other to fix the prices of these bonds sold to andpurchased from investors in the secondary market.

Bank of America, N.A. is a banking and financial services firmwith its principal place of business located at 100 North TryonStreet, Charlotte, North Carolina.

Bank of America Merrill Lynch International Limited is asubsidiary of Bank of America, N.A., with its principal place ofbusiness located at 2 King Edward Street, London EC1A 1 HQ,England.

BlackRock is an asset manager. BlackRock failed to disclose thatits funds did not trade anywhere near the narrow premium/discountbands represented in each Prospectus, that mini-flash crashes wereinevitable and BlackRock knew that its funds did not havesufficient liquidity provided by market makers and authorizedparticipants to avoid investor losses from stop-loss trades oropen market orders in the event of another Flash Crash.

Bravo's Limousine, LLC is a Connecticut corporation with principalplace of business located at 365 Delavan Avenue, Greenwich,Connecticut owned by Presley A. Bravo. Defendants providelimousine services through offices located in Greenwich,Connecticut where Gottfried was employed as a limousine driver. Heclaims to be denied pay.

(2) certifying the Settlement Class, and appointing Plaintiffs as the class representatives and their attorneys as class counsel;

(3) approving the form of Class Notice and its dissemination to the Settlement Class by U.S. mail, website, and by publication; and

(4) setting dates for opt-outs, objections, and a fairness hearing.

The Settlement Class is defined as:

"All persons who, in 2009 or 2010, received one or morefacsimile advertisements sent by or on behalf of BLP and offeringtickets for Tampa Bay Buccaneer games."

Specifically excluded from the Settlement Class are Defendant, andits respective parents, subsidiaries, divisions, affiliates,associated entities, business units, predecessors in interest,successors, successors in interest and representatives and each oftheir respective immediate family members; Class Counsel; and thejudges who have presided over the Litigation and any relatedcases.

The parties have agreed that Plaintiffs are the ClassRepresentatives and that Plaintiffs' attorneys (Phillip A. Bock,Jonathan B. Piper and Daniel J. Cohen of Bock, Hatch, Lewis &Oppenheim LLC) are Class Counsel for the Settlement Class.

Defendant has agreed to make available up to $19,500,000.00 (theSettlement Fund) to pay valid class member claims (Awards), to payincentive awards to Plaintiffs, and to pay Class Counselattorneys' fees and reasonable litigation expenses, not limited tocosts, as approved by the Court. Notice and Administration Costswill not be paid from the Settlement Fund.

Settlement Class Members who received one or more unsolicited faxadvertisements sent by or on behalf of Defendant and who submit avalid claim are eligible to receive Awards up to:

(i) $350 for the first such fax; (ii) $100 for the second such fax; (iii) $75 for the third such fax; (iv) $20 for the fourth such fax; and (v) $20 for the fifth such fax.

If the aggregate claimed awards exceed the amount available to paythe Awards, after accounting for the payment of incentive awardsand the payment of attorneys' fees and expenses, the awards to theSettlement Class Members who submitted valid claims will bereduced on a pro rata basis.

The parties have agreed to notify the Settlement Class about thesettlement by sending the notice and claim form by U.S. mail. Thenotice includes instructions about opting out, objecting, orsubmitting a claim form to the Settlement administrator by mail.In addition, the parties have agreed to publish notice to theSettlement Class in a manner that satisfies due process.

DO & CO: Faces "Ferreira" Lawsuit Under FLSA, New York Labor Law----------------------------------------------------------------LUIS FERREIRA, and all other persons similarly situated,Plaintiff, v. DO & CO NEW YORK CATERING, INC, and TINO WOHLFAHRT,individually, Defendants, Case 1:16-cv-04925 (S.D.N.Y., June 24,2016), seeks recovery against Defendants for Defendants' violationof the Fair Labor Standards Act, and the New York Labor Law, andthe supporting New York State Department of Labor regulations.

The Defendants own and/or maintain a company that providescatering for airlines in New York, as well as several otherstates, and throughout the world.

The merger proposal to sell Examworks Group, Inc. to Leonard Greenis allegedly by Exam Works' Executive Chairman, Richard E. Perlmanand its Chief Executive Officer, James J. Price ("Price"). Thecomplaint says the proposal fails to establish a special committeefor that purpose and is marred with misleading and incompletedisclosures to the Exam Works stockholders.

The City of Daytona Beach Police and Fire Pension Fund is abeneficial owner of Exam Works common stock.

Plaintiff's Complaint is conditionally certified to proceed as acollective action, defining the following class:

"All individuals who worked or are working for Defendant Exterior Walls, Inc., that performed manual labor, from February 2013 until the date of the resolution of the present action and who are or were eligible for overtime pursuant to the Fair Labor Standards Act, and who were not paid the federally required overtime rate of pay"

Parties shall meet and confer upon the notice and consent form topotential opt-in plaintiffs. Within twenty days of the entry ofthis order and prior to distributing notice to potential opt-inplaintiffs, the parties shall submit a joint proposed notice tothe Court along with an appropriate Motion for the adoption ofsuch notice.

GLAXOSMITHKLINE LLC: "McBride" Suit Alleges Zofran Side Effects---------------------------------------------------------------Cheyenne McBride, Individually and as Parent and Natural Guardianof H.M., a Minor, Plaintiffs, v. GlaxoSmithKline LLC, Case No.1:15-cv-11132 (D. Mass., June 17, 2016), seeks compensatory andpunitive damages, equitable relief, and such other relief arisingfrom the injuries to H.M. as a result of her prenatal exposures tothe generic bioequivalent form of the prescription drug Zofran,also known as Ondansetron.

H.M., was born on June 19, 2014 with esophageal reflux andcongenital heart defects after his mother, Cheyenne McBride, wasprescribed and began taking the generic bioequivalent of Zofranbeginning in her first trimester of pregnancy to alleviate andprevent the symptoms of morning sickness.

GlaxoSmithKline LLC is pharmaceutical company organized under thelaws of the State of Delaware.

The parties agree on the content of the proposed notice, providedthat it is translated into the class members' native language,Haitian Creole. The notice has now been translated by Plaintiffinto Haitian Creole, and Defendant does not object to thetranslation.

Suominen does business as Green Bay Nonwovens, Inc., a Finnishcorporation based out of Helsinki, Finland with three UnitedStates locations; Bethune, South Carolina, Windsor Locks,Connecticut and Green Bay, Wisconsin where Plaintiffs worked. Theyclaim to be denied overtime pay.

According to the complaint, controlling Stockholder Defendantshave initiated a process to sell Hansen Medical that undervaluesthe Company at a price that does not adequately reflect theCompany's true value.

Plaintiff sought to certify a class of Defendant's servicetechnicians who were not properly paid for their commutes to andfrom work. Specifically, Plaintiff alleged that Hobart's policiesrequired service technicians to drive their work vehicles (whichcontained all of their work equipment and tools) home each night,and restricted their conduct while driving these vehicles, butonly paid them if their commutes lasted longer than their "normalcommute time," in violation of California's labor laws.

The Court also appoints Joseluis Alcantar as class representativeand Workman Law Firm, P.C. as class counsel, and approves theProposed Notice (subject to the required alteration).

The Court directed Plaintiff to submit a supplemental declarationexplaining in more detail the proposed notice procedures by July6, 2016.

Defendants operated a restaurant known as Il Gabbiano located at335 South Biscayne Boulevard, Miami, Miami-Dade County, Floridawhere Policella worked as a bartender. He seeks proper minimum andovertime wage for tipped employees as well as misappropriatedtips.

(i) conditionally certifying a class of current and former servers who worked for Defendants from March 26, 2013 to present;

(ii) directing Defendants to produce to Plaintiffs' counsel within 14 days a list containing the names and last known addresses of putative class members who worked for Defendants from March 26, 2013 to present;

(iii) authorizing Plaintiffs' counsel to send a notice and consent form, to all individuals whose names appear on the list produced by Defendants' counsel; and

(iv) any other relief that is just and appropriate.

The Plaintiffs worked for Defendants between March 16, 2013 andpresent as tipped servers at Defendants' restaurant. TheDefendants owned and operated Burdines Waterfront/Chiki Tiki Barand Grill (Burdines Waterfront), located in Marathon, Florida. ThePlaintiffs' primary duties and responsibilities included waitingon customers at Defendants' restaurant as servers. The Plaintiffswere paid at a rate of less than the full minimum wage becauseDefendants availed themselves of the "tip credit" provisions ofthe Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA) and classified Plaintiffs astipped employees.

Defendants operate and/or control the hotel known as HotelBentley, located at 510 Ocean Drive, Miami Beach, FL 33139 whereMedina was employed as a housekeeper. She claims she was eased outof employment in favor of younger employees.

C. The settlement provides for a non-reversionary common fundof $3.75 million and direct mail notice to all known classmembers.

The Agreement defines the class consisting of:

"All persons in the United States who received calls from Chase between January 1, 2014 and March 22, 2016 that (a) were directed to a phone number assigned to a cellular telephone service, (b) were wrong number calls -- in that the subscriber or customary user of the phone number called was different from the party that Chase was trying to reach, (c) were placed using an automatic telephone dialing system, and (d) were directed to a phone number associated with a Chase deposit account according to Chase's records."

"All persons and entities in the United States, and its territories and possessions, that purchased AM Sheet Metal Parts directly from a Defendant between at least as early as January 1, 2003, and September 4, 2009. Excluded from the Class are any judicial officer who is assigned to hear any aspect of this action, governmental entities, Defendants, co-conspirators, and the present and former parents, predecessors, subsidiaries and affiliates of the foregoing."

KING INTELLIGENCE: "Pierre" Suit to Recover Overtime Pay--------------------------------------------------------Robenson Pierre, on behalf of himself and all others similarlysituated, Plaintiff(s), v. King Intelligence And SecurityServices, Inc., a Florida corporation and Kaola King and LarryWeems, individuals, Defendants, Case 0:16-cv-61344 (S.D. Fla.,June 21, 2016), seeks to recover unpaid wages, unpaid overtimecompensation, reimbursement for various uniform expenses,liquidated damages and reasonable attorneys' fees and costspursuant to the Fair Labor Standards Act of 1938.

Defendant is a corporation organized under the laws of the Stateof Florida, with its principal place of business located at 2880W. Oakland Park Boulevard, Suite 211, Oakland Park, Florida,33311. It is engaged in security services business, operatingprimarily out of Broward County, Florida and serving clientele in,but not limited to, Palm Beach County, Broward County, and Miami-Dade County, Florida.

L-3 COMMUNICATIONS: New York Lawsuit Alleges Violation of ERISA---------------------------------------------------------------CHRIS DODD, REBECCA HILL and FRANK KRAUS, individually and onbehalf of all others similarly situated, Plaintiffs, v.L-3 COMMUNICATIONS CORPORATION, Defendant, Case 1:16-cv-04930(S.D.N.Y., June 24, 2016), was filed under the Employee RetirementIncome Security Act, on behalf of the Plaintiff and othersimilarly situated current and former employees of L-3Communications Corporation, or its predecessor and affiliatedcompanies, who were participants in and beneficiaries of the L-3Communications Master Savings Plan and who invested in the L-3Stock Fund during the period of January 30, 2014, through July 31,2014, inclusive.

For purposes of Count I, alleging violation of the TelephoneConsumer Protection Act:

"A class consisting of (a) all persons with Illinois fax numbers (b) who, on or after a date four years prior to the filing of this action (28 U.S.C. Sec. 1658), (c) were sent faxes by or on behalf of defendant Mayne Pharma, Inc., promoting its goods or services for sale (d) which did not contain an opt out notice."

For purposes of Count II, alleging violation of the IllinoisConsumer Fraud Act:

"A class consisting of (a) all persons with Illinois fax numbers (b) who, on or after a date three years prior to the filing of this action, (c) were sent faxes by or on behalf of defendant Mayne Pharma, Inc., promoting its goods or services for sale (d) which did not contain an opt out notice."

"A class consisting of (a) all persons with Illinois fax numbers (b) who, on or after a date five years prior to the filing of this action, (c) were sent faxes by or on behalf of defendant Mayne Pharma, Inc., promoting its goods or services for sale (d) which did not contain an opt out notice."

The Plaintiff further requests that it be appointed classrepresentative and that Edelman, Combs, Latturner & Goodwin, LLCbe appointed counsel for the class.

To avoid the risk of a defendant mooting a putative classrepresentative's individual stake in the litigation, the SeventhCircuit in Damasco instructed plaintiffs to file a certificationmotion with the complaint, along with a motion to stay briefing onthe certification motion until discovery could commence. Damascov. Clearwire Corp., 662 F.3d 891 (7th Cir. 2011), overruled,Chapman v. First Index, Inc., 796 F.3d 783, 787 (7th Cir. 2015).

As this motion to certify a class is a placeholder motion asdescribed in Damasco, the parties and the Court should not beburdened with unnecessary paperwork and the resulting expense whena one paragraph, single page motion to certify and stay shouldsuffice until an amended motion is filed, the Plaintiffs contend.

Plaintiff Farah Gohari brought this action against Defendants,arising from mispriced menu items -- charging above the pricesposted at the McDonald's locations at O'Hare Airport inChicago. Despite being aware of the difference between the postedmenu prices and the actual prices charged, the operators of theselocations continue to advertise a different lower price than theamount actually charged the consumer in the actual purchase.

The class is defined as: "All persons who purchased McDonald'sitems at O'Hare Airport in Chicago, Illinois, that were mismarkedand advertised for less on the Menu and were charged more than theadvertised price at the register. (The known dates of purchaseinclude at least the period from sometime before May 28, 2016 andcontinuing through June 19, 2016; exact time frame to bedetermined by discovery)."

McDonald's is the leading global foodservice retailer with over36000 restaurants in more than 100 countries around the world.

MCI EASTERN: Sued in N.J. Super. Ct. Over Alarm Systems Purchase----------------------------------------------------------------MARIAN FAHMY-HAWASH AND RAYMOND HAWASH, on behalf of themselvesand all others similarly situated, the Plaintiff, v. MCI EASTERNSECURITY, LLC, a New Jersey entity, the Defendant, Case No. L2225-16 (N.J. Super. Ct., June 20, 2016), seeks injunctive relief anddamages on behalf of themselves and all other similarly situatedconsumers, citizens of New Jersey, who were presented with andentered into standard written agreements with Defendant for thepurchase of Defendant's alarm systems.

According to the complaint, the Defendant's standard writtenagreements contain several unconscionable, unlawful, andunenforceable limitations of consumer rights and remedies inviolation of the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act, and the New JerseyTruth-in-Consumer Contract, Warranty and Notice Act.

Plaintiff alleges that the 722.9 7GTronic automatic transmissionin the Mercedes vehicle he owns has a valve body and conductorplate that causes the transmission to fail prematurely and needreplacement well before the useful life of the transmission or thevehicle.

MILWAUKEE COUNTY: "Ruehs" Files Suit Under FLSA-----------------------------------------------Cheryl Ruehs, Individually and on behalf of all others similarlysituated, Plaintiff, v. Milwaukee County, Wisconsin, Defendant,Case No. 2:16-cv-00769 (E.D. Wis., June 21, 2016), seekscompensation for all uncompensated work and other forms of reliefincluding all penalties, liquidated damages and reasonableattorneys' fees and costs under the Fair Labor Standards Act.

Milwaukee County is a political subdivision of the State ofWisconsin where Ruehs was employed as a registered nurse.Defendants and their supervisors allegedly failed to pay employeesfor all hours of work.

Mrs. Floriselda Orozco typically worked from 8:00 a.m. to 7:00p.m. six days per week. Defendants paid Floriselda Orozco a flatdaily rate, ranging from $40.00 to $95.00 per day, while workingapproximately 65 hours over the course of a typical work week,consisting of six days of work. As a consequence of regularlyworking 65 hours and being paid the flat daily rate, PlaintiffFloriselda Orozco was not paid minimum wage for all hours worked.The Defendants allegedly failed to compensate the Plaintiff at herproper overtime rate for all hours worked above 40 hours, despitetypically requiring her to work approximately 25 overtime hoursper week.

Next Level provides professional house, apartment, and businesscleaning services.

The Defendants allegedly made, or caused to be made, affirmativemisrepresentations of material facts in the furtherance of thisscheme. They also willfully and knowingly concealed material factsfrom Plaintiffs including the true value of the leased equipment,and routinely failed to give Plaintiffs a copy of the lease oreven to reveal the existence of more than the first page of thelease.

Northern Leasing purports to offer micro-ticket leasing servicesto businesses seeking to spread the cost of utilizing credit cardprocessing services over an extended period rather than paying thefull cost of required equipment upfront.

Randol and other workers similarly situated to him were typicallyscheduled for 12-plus-hour shifts, seven days a week (for weeks ata time). But these workers never received overtime for all of thehours that they worked in excess of 40 hours in a single workweek.Instead of paying overtime, the Defendant allegedly paid theseworkers a salary and a day-rate, with no overtime pay in directviolation of the FLSA. This collective action seeks to recover theunpaid overtime wages and other damages owed to these workers.

The FLSA Class is defined as: ALL CURRENT AND FORMER EMPLOYEES OFNZONE GUIDANCE, L.L.C., EMPLOYED DURING THE PAST THREE (3) YEARSWHO RECEIVED A SALARY AND A DAY-RATE WITH NO OVERTIMECOMPENSATION.

Defendant is a comprehensive oilfield services and surveyingcompany providing directional planning, drilling and surveyingservices as well as performance motors, MWD engineering services,and steering tools for the oil and gas industry.

The Plaintiff further requests that the Court both stay the motionfor class certification and to grant Plaintiff (and Defendant)relief from the Local Rules setting automatic briefing schedulesand requiring briefs and supporting material to be filed with themotion.

To avoid the risk of a defendant mooting a putative classrepresentative's individual stake in the litigation, the SeventhCircuit in Damasco instructed plaintiffs to file a certificationmotion with the complaint, along with a motion to stay briefing onthe certification motion until discovery could commence. Damascov. Clearwire Corp., 662 F.3d 891 (7th Cir. 2011), overruled,Chapman v. First Index, Inc., 796 F.3d 783, 787 (7th Cir. 2015).

As this motion to certify a class is a placeholder motion asdescribed in Damasco, the parties and the Court should not beburdened with unnecessary paperwork and the resulting expense whena one paragraph, single page motion to certify and stay shouldsuffice until an amended motion is filed, the Plaintiffs contend.

(2) authorize mailing of the notice to potential class members and Opt-In/Consent form to all "Temporary Workers" who were employed by Defendant at any time within the three years immediately preceding conditional certification; and

(3) require Defendant's representative(s) to produce under oath and under penalty of perjury, the names, addresses, phone numbers, dates of birth, and Social Security numbers of all such class members so that notice may be timely implemented.

Darryl Robinson Jr. and Dominick Robinson alleged that theDefendant failed to pay them overtime wages as required by law.The Plaintiffs seek to notify other current and former employeesof the Defendant of their right to recover their unpaid overtimewages by joining this lawsuit.

(a) certification of the Class under CPLR Article 9 andappointing Plaintiff as representative of the Class andPlaintiffs' counsel as Lead Counsel for the Class;

(b) an award for the amount of the Plaintiffs and ClassMembers' unpaid overtime and pre- and post-judgment interest asallowed by law;

(c) an award to Plaintiff and the Class Members of statutorypenalties for each workday that Defendant failed to providePlaintiff and the Class Members with an accurate wage statement,or a total of $5,000 per Class Member, as provided by the New YorkLabor Law (NYLL);

(d) an award of injunctive relief as the Court deemsnecessary and proper to prevent against future violations of NYLL;

(e) an award to Plaintiff and the Class Members ofreasonable attorneys' fees and costs pursuant to New York LaborLaw; and

(f) an award to Plaintiff and the Class Members of suchfurther relief as the Court deems just and proper.

The Defendant has engaged and continues to engage in illegal andimproper wage practices, including (i) requiring DSPs to performwork without compensation during meal breaks; (ii) failing to payall DSPs overtime of time and one-half their regular rate of payfor all hours worked over forty; and (iii) failing to provideaccurate wage statements.

The Class is defined as: "All hourly paid employees who work orworked as a direct service professional (DSP) of Defendant Paul J.Cooper Center For Human Services, Inc. in the State of New York atany time during the period commencing six years prior to thefiling of this action and continuing until such further date asthe practices complained of are discontinued."

Paul J. Cooper operates as a non-profit organization. TheOrganization provides assistance to people with chemicaldependency.

Defendants own, operate, and/or control two bars located at 3566th Avenue, Brooklyn, New York 11215 and 62 Henry Street,Brooklyn, New York 11201, where Plaintiffs were employed as cooks,food preparers, and dishwashers.

"All persons who (1) on or after four years prior to the filing of this action, (2) were sent telephone facsimile messages of material advertising the commercial availability or quality of any property, goods, or services by or on behalf of Defendants, and (3) which Defendants did not have prior express permission or invitation, or (4) which did not display a proper opt-out notice."

To avoid the risk of a defendant mooting a putative classrepresentative's individual stake in the litigation, the SeventhCircuit in Damasco instructed plaintiffs to file a certificationmotion with the complaint, along with a motion to stay briefing onthe certification motion until discovery could commence. Damascov. Clearwire Corp., 662 F.3d 891 (7th Cir. 2011), overruled,Chapman v. First Index, Inc., 796 F.3d 783, 787 (7th Cir. 2015).

As this motion to certify a class is a placeholder motion asdescribed in Damasco, the parties and the Court should not beburdened with unnecessary paperwork and the resulting expense whena one paragraph, single page motion to certify and stay shouldsuffice until an amended motion is filed, the Plaintiffs contend.

The Defendants allegedly established and imposed an unlawful tippool upon servers at S & P Oyster Company, requiring them to pay apercentage of their earned gratuities to non-tipped employeesincluding expediters, food runners, cooks, dishwashers, andmanagers. Because defendants established the illegal tip-poolingscheme they are not entitled to reduce servers' minimum wage rateby applying the tip credit allowance, and have deprived theservers of their statutory minimum and overtime wages under theFLSA and the CMWA.

The Class of persons consisting of: "All current and formerservers of S & P Oyster Company between June 20, 2014 and the dateof the final judgment in this matter."

S & P is a restaurant serving traditional New England seafood andcuisine infused with South American flavors.

The Defendants were allegedly aware of Plaintiff's work scheduleand further aware that Plaintiff was working more than 40 hoursper week. Defendants were aware of Plaintiff's pay records and therate that she was being paid for her hours. Despite Defendants'having knowledge of Plaintiff's hours and their failure to payovertime wages, Defendants did not change its pay practices andcontinued to fail to pay Plaintiff, and those similarly situated,the overtime wages due.

The main purpose of AMs' jobs was to perform general customerservice and auto repair work on customers' vehicles. Their jobduties included, but were not limited to, performing service andrepair work on customers' brakes and lightbulbs; and replacingwindshield wipers. AMs did not have the authority to hireemployees, fire employees, or set employees' rate of pay, nor didthey have any authority or control over their stores' budgets.Despite the fact that the primary purpose of the AM position wasnon-managerial, STS classified all of its AMs as exempt employeesand did not pay them overtime.

STS was founded in 1958 in Somerset County, New Jersey. STS wasone of the largest tire and automotive service retailers in theNortheast and operated 155 stores throughout Pennsylvania, NewYork, and New Jersey.

(2) authorize mailing of the notice to potential class members and Opt-In/Consent form to all "Security Guards" who were employed by Defendant at any time within the three years immediately preceding conditional certification; and

(3) require Defendant's representative(s) to produce under oath and under penalty of perjury, the names, addresses, phone numbers, dates of birth, and Social Security numbers of all such class members so that notice may be timely implemented.

Robinson alleged that the Defendant failed to pay him overtimewages as required by law. The Plaintiff now seeks to notify othercurrent and former employees of Defendant of the pendency of thislawsuit and their right to participate.

Defendants are five legally distinct entities that in practiceoperate together as a single enterprise that offer debt relief toindividual consumers throughout the United States where Plaintiffworked as a negotiator.

SUNRUN INC: Faces "Bozarth" Lawsuit Alleging Violation of TCPA--------------------------------------------------------------SEAN BOZARTH, on behalf of himself and all others similarlysituated, Plaintiff, v. SUNRUN, INC., a Delaware Corporation;CLEAN ENERGY EXPERTS, LLC, a California limited liability companydoing business as SOLAR AMERICA, and Does 1 through 10, inclusive,Defendants, Case 3:16-cv-03550 (N.D. Cal., June 24, 2016), allegesthat Defendants negligently, knowingly, and willfully contactedPlaintiff and proposed class members on their residential/cellulartelephones using an autodialer and an artificial or prerecordedvoice without their prior express written consent within themeaning of the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, and made callsin violation of the TCPA's national do not call provisions.

Sunrun Inc. is a residential solar company in the United States.It develops, owns, manages, and sells residential solar energysystems in Arizona, California, Colorado, Connecticut, Delaware,Hawaii, Maryland, Massachusetts, Nevada, New Hampshire, NewJersey, New York, Oregon, Pennsylvania and South Carolina.

"All persons currently or formerly employed by Defendants as Animal Control Technicians, or with similar job descriptions however titled, who were paid on a commission basis and who were compensated at a rate less than the applicable minimum wage pursuant to Florida law or were not paid overtime compensation required by the Fair Labor Standards Act at any time between June 23, 2009 to the present."

The Court also ordered the following:

1. Swanson had until July 7, 2016, to produce a complete listof the names, last known home addresses, telephone numbers, and e-mail addresses of all persons currently or formerly employed byAllstar Animal Removal, Inc. or Swanson as Animal ControlTechnicians or with similar job descriptions however titled, whowere paid on a commission basis during any pay period between June23, 2009 and the present.

2. Plaintiffs should mail the proposed Notice of Consent toOpt-In to all persons currently or formerly employed by AllstarAnimal Removal, Inc. or Swanson as Animal Control Technicians orwith similar job descriptions however titled, who were paid on acommission basis within the last five years prior to the date theNotice is mailed, but not earlier than June 23, 2009. The Noticeshould include an opt-in deadline of 60 days after the mailing ofthe Notice.

3. On or before June 30, 2016, the parties were to file ajoint status report, notifying the Court how they wish to proceedin light of the rapidly approaching case management deadlines.

SWIRE OILFIELD: "Landry" Suit Moved to S.D. Fla-----------------------------------------------Eddie Landry, Mario Constancio, Jr. and Mark Tamayo, Plaintiffs,v. Swire Oilfield Services L.L.C. and Swire Water Solutions Inc.,Defendants, Case No. 1:16-cv-00621 (D.N.M. June 21, 2015), wastransferred to the United States District Court for the SouthernDistrict of Florida on June 17, 2016, and assigned Case No. 9:16-cv-81024.

Plaintiffs claim to be denied overtime pay.

Swire Oilfield Services L.L.C. is a limited liability companyorganized under the laws of Louisiana. Swire Water Solutions Inc.is a corporation organized under the laws of Delaware. They areowned by Swire Oilfield Services U.S. Holdings, LLC, a Delawarelimited liability company.

Swire provides oilfield services, including oilfield fluidmanagement, to drilling companies across the globe, includingvirtually every major oil play in the state of New Mexico and theUnited States where Plaintiffs are responsible for rigging upoilfield equipment, monitoring drilling fluids, and generallyassisting in the drilling process.

(2) allow for and schedule discovery to take place on classwide issues;

(3) grant Plaintiff leave to file a memorandum in support of her Motion for Class Certification upon the conclusion of classwide discovery;

(4) grant Plaintiff's Motion for Class Certification after full briefing of the issues presented, certifying the Class, appointing Plaintiff as the Class Representative and appointing undersigned counsel for Plaintiff as counsel for the Class; and

(5) provide all other and further relief that the Court deems equitable and just.

b. To whose cellular telephones Defendants and/or their agent placed calls during the hours between 9 p.m. and 9:00 a.m. one year prior to the filing of this Complaint;

c. Using an "autodialer" or "autodialer system" an automatic telephone dialing system to automatically connect a telephone with a "recorded message";

d. Using a "voice messaging system" to deliver messages to recipients;

e. Wherein the call was made without a live operator and without an inquiry at the beginning of the call as to whether the called consents to hear the prerecorded message and in so doing proximately damaged the members of the class by impermissibly leaving a prerecorded message on the recipients limited cellular message system.

Takata Corporation is a foreign for-profit corporation with itsprincipal place of business in Tokyo, Japan. Takata is aspecialized supplier of automotive safety systems that designs,manufactures, tests, markets, distributes, and sells airbags.

Defendants hired Plaintiffs and other similarly situated employeesto work as Tire Specialists, Salesmen, Customer ServiceRepresentatives and/or Technicians at the Glen Burnie and/orBaltimore shops. Defendants required Plaintiffs to regularly workin excess of 40 hours per week without paying overtime wages.Defendants were able to complete these illegal acts by payingPlaintiffs under the guise of a salary. However, Plaintiffs'duties did not exempt them from the overtime requirements of theFLSA, MWHL and MWCPL. Defendants allegedly misclassifiedPlaintiffs as salaried employees for the purpose of not payingovertime compensation and for all hours worked over 40 per week.

Trees R Us, Inc., is a corporation organized under the laws of NewYork with a principal executive office at 99 South Saxon Avenue,Bayshore, NY 11706, where Plaintiffs worked as tree cutters,pruners, drivers and cleaners. They claim to be denied overtimepay, minimum wages and accurate pay stubs.

UNITED STATES: SEC Sued Over "Accredited Investor" Definition-------------------------------------------------------------Chase Morello for himself and on behalf of a class of similarly-situated individuals, the Plaintiff, v. Mary Joe White, Securitiesand Exchange Commissioner Chair, and The United States Securitiesand Exchange Commission, the Defendants, Case No. 2:16-cv-04440-DMG-AJW (C.D. Cal., June 20, 2016), requests:

a. certification of this case as a class action lawsuit, andappointment of plaintiff as representative of the class and theundersigned counsel;

The Class is defined as: "All past, current and future Non-Accredited Investors comprising more than 89.9% of Americans asadmitted in the Defendant's December 2015 Accredited DefinitionReport."

The Defendant is an independent federal agency established toprotect all investors who buy stocks and bonds.

The Plaintiff appears pro se.

VIRGINIA: Officials Face Suit Over Citizens' Voting Right---------------------------------------------------------Carroll Boston Correll, Jr., on behalf of himself and otherssimilarly situated, Plaintiff, V. Mark R. Herring, in his officialcapacity as Attorney General of the Commonwealth of Virginia, MarcAbrams, in his official capacity as Commonwealth Attorney for theCity of Winchester, James B. Alcorn, in his official capacity asChairman of the Virginia State Board of Elections, Clara BelleWheeler, in her official capacity as Vice Chairman of the VirginiaState Board of Elections, Singleton McAllister, in her officialcapacity as Secretary of the Virginia State Board of Elections,and Edgardo Cortez, in his official capacity as Commissioner ofthe Virginia Department of Elections, Defendants, Case 3:16-cv-00467-REP (E.D. Va., June 24, 2016), seeks to obtain emergencyinjunctive relief that allows all Virginia delegates to vote theirconsciences at the parties' national conventions free from thethreat of criminal sanction.

Virginia, officially the Commonwealth of Virginia, is a statelocated in the South Atlantic region of the United States.

These class definitions shall apply for all purposes, includingsettlement. Latasha McLaughlin is appointed as classrepresentative of all Plaintiff classes. Berman DeValerio and WolfPopper LLP are hereby appointed as class counsel, with Patricia I.Avery of Wolf Popper LLP to serve as lead counsel.

By July 12, 2016, the parties shall jointly submit a proposal forclass notification, with the plan to distribute notice by July 28,2016.

Defendant is a logistics company operating within Dade Countyowned/managed by Pedro Utreras, Patricio Amores and EsmeraldaCastillo where Plaintiff was employed by Defendants as aninventory and quality control clerk.

3. Denying XTO's motion to stay consideration of Plaintiff's motions for partial summary judgment on behalf of the uncertified class.

In 2012, this Court certified a class of Kansas royalty ownersrepresented by the Trust. XTO appealed that decision, and theTenth Circuit vacated the order and remanded for furtherproceedings. Now before the Court is the Trust's second motion forclass certification, which XTO opposes.

Zesty Pizza & Deli, Inc. operates Zesty Pizzeria & Salumerialocated at 1670 Third Avenue, New York, New York and is owned bySalvatore Grimaldi and Stefano Grimaldi. Barrera was employed as acounter and kitchen staff.

The Appellative Division also affirmed the order of the same courtand Justice, entered March 13, 2015, which granted National Grid'smotion for summary judgment on its claim against defendantO'Connor Constructors, Inc., for indemnification, except forattorneys' fees, and denied O'Connor's motion for summary judgmentdismissing National Grid's indemnification claim as against it,unanimously modified, on the law, to grant National Grid's motionas to attorneys' fees solely in connection with its defenseagainst plaintiff's action.

A full-text copy of the Decision dated June 28, 2016, is availableat https://is.gd/Shin0W from Leagle.com.

ASBESTOS UPDATE: Joint Trial of 2 Mesothelioma Cases Affirmed-------------------------------------------------------------In the appeals case captioned IN THE MATTER OF NEW YORK CITYASBESTOS LITIGATION relating to RUBY E. KONSTANTIN, & C.,Respondent, AND 630 THIRD AVENUE ASSOCIATES, ET AL., Defendants,TISHMAN LIQUIDATING CORPORATION, Appellant, No. 85 (N.Y. App.),the Court of Appeals of New York affirmed the Appellate Division'sorder determining that the issue in the case was reviewable andconcluded that Supreme Court did not err in holding a joint trial.

Before his death, Konstantin and plaintiff commenced the presentaction against TLC, among others. Konstantin's case was assignedalong with nine other cases, including Matter of New York CityAsbestos Litigation (Dummitt v A.W. Chesterton et al.) (___ NY3d___, 2016 NY Slip Op ___ [____]) to an in extremis trial calendar.The 10 plaintiffs, all of whom were represented by the same firm,subsequently requested a joint trial pursuant to CPLR 602 (a).All defendants jointly opposed that motion. Supreme Court orderedthat seven of the 10 cases, in which the plaintiffs had developedmesothelioma, would be tried together, and the remaining threecases, in which the plaintiffs had developed lung cancer, would betried together. Thus, the court's order required the cases ofKonstantin and Dummitt, who had both developed mesothelioma, to betried with five others.

Before trial, however, the other five cases settled, leaving onlyKonstantin and Dummitt to be tried together. The jury found TLC76% liable for Konstantin's injuries and awarded damages. SupremeCourt denied TLC's posttrial motion to set aside the verdict inrelevant part, holding that the joint trial was not improper, butreduced the jury's damages award.

The Appellate Division considered the Dummitt and Konstantinappeals together (121 A.D.3d 230 [1st Dept 2014]). TLC contended,among other things, that Supreme Court abused its discretion inholding a joint trial. The Appellate Division determined that theissue was reviewable and concluded that Supreme Court did not errin holding a joint trial.

A full-text copy of the Court of Appeals' decision dated June 28,2016, is available at https://is.gd/CcvTd5 from Leagle.com.

Kathleen M. Sullivan, for appellant.

Seth A. Dymond, for respondent.

Business Council of New York State et al.; John Crane Inc., amicicuriae.

ASBESTOS UPDATE: Crane Co. Has Duty to Warn, NY Court Rules-----------------------------------------------------------In the appeals cases captioned IN THE MATTER OF NEW YORK CITYASBESTOS LITIGATION relating to DORIS KAY DUMMITT, & C.,Respondent, and A.W. CHESTERTON, ET AL., Defendants, CRANE CO.,Appellant and IN THE MATTER OF EIGHTH JUDICIAL DISTRICT ASBESTOSLITIGATION relating to JOANN H. SUTTNER, & C., Respondent, andA.W. CHESTERTON COMPANY, ET AL., Defendants, CRANE CO., Appellant,Nos. 83, 84 (N.Y. App.), the Court of Appeals of New York wascalled upon to decide when, if ever, a manufacturer must warnagainst the danger inherent in using the manufacturer's producttogether with a product designed and produced by another company.

Consistent with its decision in Rastelli v Goodyear Tire & RubberCo. (79 N.Y.2d 289 [1992]), the Court of Appeals hold that themanufacturer of a product has a duty to warn of the danger arisingfrom the known and reasonably foreseeable use of its product incombination with a third-party product which, as a matter ofdesign, mechanics or economic necessity, is necessary to enablethe manufacturer's product to function as intended. The Court ofAppeals further concludes that, given the proof of defendant CraneCo.'s affirmative steps to integrate its valves with third-partyasbestos-laden products and other relevant evidence, the courts .. . properly applied this principle to the instant cases andcorrectly resolved the remaining legal issues.

A full-text copy of the Court of Appeals' June 28, 2016, decisionis available at https://is.gd/XF3dPb from Leagle.com.

Case No. 83:

Caitlin J. Halligan, for appellant.

Seth A. Dymond, for respondents.

Business Council of New York State et al.; Pacific LegalFoundation; New York State Trial Lawyers Association; The RetiredEnlisted Association et al.; Product Liability Advisory Council;United Steel et al.; Environmental Working Group et al.; GeneralElectric; CBS Corporation, amici curiae.

Case No. 84:

Caitlin J. Halligan, for appellant.

John N. Lipsitz, for respondent.

Business Council of New York State et al.; CBS Corporation; UnitedStates Chamber of Commerce, amici curiae.

In this asbestos personal injury action, the plaintiff claims thathis decedent contracted mesothelioma because of exposure to talcmanufactured by defendant Colgate. Colgate moves for summaryjudgment dismissing the plaintiffs' complaint and any cross-claimsagainst it. The Defendant asserts that the motion should begranted because (1) the plaintiffs' action is untimely under CPLR214-c; (2) the plaintiffs failed to exclude other potential causesof deceased plaintiff Arlene Feinberg's mesothelioma; (3) theplaintiffs failed to prove that Cashmere Bouquet talcum powder,which Colgate asserts was safe and asbestos-free, caused her todevelop mesothelioma; and (4) there is no evidence of general orspecific causation.

Judge Moulton held, "Colgate is foreclosed from arguing thatplaintiffs' experts should be precluded on summary judgment,because Justice Shulman already decided this issue in his January8, 2016 decision. In reply, Colgate did not address this point.While counsel addressed the issue at oral argument, the argumentwas unpersuasive.10 On January 8, 2016, on reargument, JusticeShulman upheld his March 28, 2014 bench ruling rejecting Colgate'smotion to preclude plaintiffs' expert Sean Fitzgerald oralternatively for a Frye hearing to reject his methodology.Justice Shulman also denied defendant's motion in limine topreclude plaintiffs' medical causation witnesses Drs. Moline andStrauchen. In rejecting the motion he reasoned that "a jury willhave to weigh the evidence the parties are expected to present todecide whether C-P's consumer talc product was in factcontaminated with amphibole asbestos in sufficient quantity tohave been a substantial factor in causing decedent-plaintiffFeinberg's mesothelioma" (Ex 1, Horn Affirm). I cannot reviewJustice Shulman's ruling under the guise that this is a motion forsummary judgment, and not a motion in limine, when Justice Shulmanalready found that the experts' testimony was sufficient to bepresented to the jury."

A full-text copy of Judge Moulton's Decision dated June 22, 2016,is available at https://is.gd/d6NvfE from Leagle.com.

The issue presented is whether the trustees of the Defendantpension plan abused their discretion by concluding that Bergin isineligible for benefits because he is not retired and because hemade a material misrepresentation on his pension application.

Judge Mendoza held that the trustees did not abuse theirdiscretion when they denied Bergin's petition for review.

A full-text copy of Judge Mendoza's Order dated June 29, 2016, isavailable at https://is.gd/WcAdzH from Leagle.com.

The Court of Appeals of Wisconsin, District IV, in a decisiondated June 23, 2016, a full-text copy of which is available athttps://is.gd/hu6VjF from Leagle.com, reversed the judgment,agreeing that the summary judgment evidence creates a genuineissue of material fact on the question of fraudulent transfer.

Plaintiffs, Joseph Sondag and his spouse, Phyllis Sondag, sueddefendant, Tremco, Inc., claiming that asbestos-containing tapemanufactured by defendant and used by Joseph Sondag in hisprofession as a plasterer had caused him to develop pleuralplaques and interstitial fibrosis. The jury returned a verdict inthe plaintiffs' favor, awarding them damages. The Defendantappeals.

In reversing the trial court's judgment, the Appellate Court heldthat the trial court should have granted the defendant's motionfor a directed verdict, considering that, insomuch as the evidencebefore the jury showed, Joseph Sondag is asymptomatic and thus hassuffered no "physical harm."

A full-text copy of the Opinion dated June 20, 2016, is availableat https://is.gd/wjRCyC from Leagle.com.

In this declaratory judgment action involving the right toreinsurance coverage, Granite State moves following completion ofdiscovery for summary judgment. Clearwater cross-moves for summaryjudgment, for a declaration that it need not indemnify GraniteState under the parties' reinsurance contract.

Granite State, incorporated in Pennsylvania, with a principalplace of business in New York, is a member of the AmericanInternational Group of insurance companies. AIG issued dozens ofpolices of insurance to nonparty Kaiser Aluminum & ChemicalCorporation between 1970 and 1985, for approximately $574 millionin total exposure. Granite State issued the policy herein toKaiser for excess coverage, effective April 1, 1981 to April 1,1982.

Hundreds of thousands of bodily injury claims were made againstKaiser during the period in question, for losses arising fromexposure to asbestos, from products produced by Kaiser, or used atpremises where injured parties were employed. The losses amountedto many millions, if not billions, of dollars. Kaiser's variousinsurers disputed coverage. Kaiser commenced litigation in theCalifornia courts in May 2000, seeking coverage from its insurers.See Kaiser Alum. & Chem. Corp v Certain Underwriters as Lloyd'sLondon, Case No. 312415 (Cal Super Ct, San. Fran. County)(Coverage Litigation). Granite State and AIG became parties tothis litigation in 2000.

In denying the motions, Judge Coin held that there are questionsof fact as to whether Granite State breached its warranty ofretention, and as to whether Granite State paid losses which werenot "actually covered" under the policy, so as to obviateClearwater's obligation to pay for such losses. Thus, the motionand cross-motion must be denied.

A full-text copy of Judge Coin's Decision dated June 17, 2016, isavailable at https://is.gd/ovr6xY from Leagle.com.

ASBESTOS UPDATE: Chemtura Still Facing Asbestos Claims at Dec. 31-----------------------------------------------------------------Chemtura Corporation remains as subject to asbestos-related claimsand litigation concerning premises and historic products of theCompany's corporate affiliates and predecessors, according to theCompany's Form 10-K filing with the U.S. Securities and ExchangeCommission for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2015.

The Company states "We are routinely subject to other civilclaims, litigation and arbitration, and regulatory investigations,arising in the ordinary course of our business, as well as inrespect of our divested businesses. Some of these claims andlitigations relate to product liability claims, including claimsrelated to our current and historic products and asbestos-relatedclaims concerning premises and historic products of our corporateaffiliates and predecessors."

Chemtura Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, develops,manufactures, and markets performance-driven engineered industrialspecialty chemicals for industrial manufacturing customers in theUnited States and internationally. Chemtura Corporation wasfounded in 1900 and is based in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

ASBESTOS UPDATE: Crane Co. Reports $546M Liability at Dec. 31-------------------------------------------------------------Crane Co. has reported an aggregate asbestos liability of $546million for pending claims and future claims projected to be filedagainst the Company through December 31, 2021, according to theCompany's Form 10-K filing with the U.S. Securities and ExchangeCommission for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2015.

The Company states, "As of December 31, 2015, we had an aggregateasbestos liability of $546 million for pending claims and futureclaims projected to be filed against us through December 31, 2021.Estimation of our exposure for asbestos-related claims is subjectto significant uncertainties, as there are multiple variables thatcan affect the timing, severity and quantity of claims and themanner of their resolution. We have retained the firm of Hamilton,Rabinovitz & Associates, Inc. ("HR&A"), a nationally recognizedexpert in the field, to assist management in estimating ourasbestos liability in the tort system. HR&A reviews informationprovided by us concerning claims filed, settled and dismissed,amounts paid in settlements and relevant claim information such asthe nature of the asbestos-related disease asserted by theclaimant, the jurisdiction where filed and the time lag fromfiling to disposition of the claim. The methodology used by HR&Ato project future asbestos costs is based largely on ourexperience during a base reference period of eleven quarterlyperiods (consisting of the two full preceding calendar years andthree additional quarterly periods to the estimate date) forclaims filed, settled and dismissed. Our experience is thencompared to estimates of the number of individuals likely todevelop asbestos-related diseases determined based on widely usedpreviously conducted epidemiological studies augmented withcurrent data inputs. Using that information, HR&A estimates thenumber of future claims that would be filed against us through ourforecast period and estimates the aggregate settlement orindemnity costs that would be incurred to resolve both pending andfuture claims based upon the average settlement costs by diseaseduring the reference period. Our liability estimate is augmentedfor the estimated cost of defending asbestos claims in the tortsystem. The most significant factors affecting the liabilityestimate are (1) the number of new mesothelioma claims filedagainst us, (2) the average settlement costs for mesotheliomaclaims, (3) the percentage of mesothelioma claims dismissedagainst us and (4) the aggregate defense costs incurred by us.These factors are interdependent, and no one factor predominatesin determining the liability estimate."

Crane Co. manufactures and sells engineered industrial products inthe United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Continental Europe,and internationally. Crane Co. was founded in 1855 and is based inStamford, Connecticut.

ASBESTOS UPDATE: Crane Has $129M Insurance Recovery at Dec. 31--------------------------------------------------------------Crane Co. reports an estimate of probable insurance recoveries forits asbestos liabilities at $129 million, according to theCompany's Form 10-K filing with the U.S. Securities and ExchangeCommission for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2015.

The Company states "In conjunction with developing the aggregateliability estimate, we also developed an estimate of probableinsurance recoveries for our asbestos liabilities. As of December31, 2015, we had an aggregate asbestos receivable of $129 million.In developing this estimate, we considered our coverage-in-placeand other settlement agreements, as well as a number of additionalfactors. These additional factors include the financial viabilityof the insurance companies, the method by which losses will beallocated to the various insurance policies and the years coveredby those policies, how settlement and defense costs will becovered by the insurance policies and interpretation of the effecton coverage of various policy terms and limits and theirinterrelationships."

Crane Co. manufactures and sells engineered industrial products inthe United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Continental Europe,and internationally. Crane Co. was founded in 1855 and is based inStamford, Connecticut.

ASBESTOS UPDATE: Crane Co. Faces 41,090 Claims at Dec. 31---------------------------------------------------------Crane Co. faces 41,090 pending claims alleging injury or death asa result of exposure to asbestos, according to the Company's Form10-K filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission forthe fiscal year ended December 31, 2015.

As of December 31, 2015, the Company was a defendant in casesfiled in numerous state and federal courts alleging injury ordeath as a result of exposure to asbestos.

Of the 41,090 pending claims as of December 31, 2015,approximately 18,500 claims were pending in New York,approximately 5,000 claims were pending in Texas, approximately5,100 claims were pending in Mississippi, and approximately 200claims were pending in Ohio, all jurisdictions in whichlegislation or judicial orders restrict the types of claims thatcan proceed to trial on the merits.

Crane Co. manufactures and sells engineered industrial products inthe United States, Canada, the United Kingdom, Continental Europe,and internationally. Crane Co. was founded in 1855 and is based inStamford, Connecticut.

ASBESTOS UPDATE: TransRe Settles Asbestos Liabilities for $400MM----------------------------------------------------------------TransRe made a settlement payment of $400 million in 2015 toterminate certain liabilities and obligations which eliminated thevast majority of its asbestos-related illness and environmentalimpairment loss and LAE reserves, according to the AlleghanyCorporation's Form 10-K filing with the U.S. Securities andExchange Commission for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2015.

The Company states "Our reinsurance and insurance subsidiaries'reserves for loss and LAE include amounts for risks relating toasbestos-related illness and environmental impairment. Thereserves carried for such claims, including the IBNR portion, arebased upon known facts and current law at the respective balancesheet dates. However, significant uncertainty exists indetermining the amount of ultimate liability for asbestos-relatedillness and environmental impairment losses, particularly forthose occurring in 1985 and prior, which prior to the CommutationAgreement, as defined below, represented the majority of TransRe'sasbestos-related illness and environmental impairment reserves.This uncertainty is due to inconsistent and changing courtresolutions and judicial interpretations with respect tounderlying policy intent and coverage and uncertainties as to theallocation of responsibility for resultant damages, among otherreasons. Further, possible future changes in statutes, laws,regulations, theories of liability and other factors could have amaterial effect on these liabilities and, accordingly, futureearnings. Although we are unable at this time to determine whetheradditional reserves, which could have a material adverse effectupon our results of operations, may be necessary in the future, webelieve that our asbestos-related illness and environmentalimpairment reserves are adequate as of December 31, 2015.

On November 30, 2015, TransRe entered into a commutation andrelease agreement with AIG Property Casualty, Inc., NationalIndemnity Company and Resolute Management, Inc. with respect tocertain reinsurance contracts, or the "Commutation Agreement,"including contracts covering asbestos-related illness andenvironmental impairment liabilities for 1986 and prior years, orthe "Commuted A&E Liabilities." Pursuant to the CommutationAgreement, TransRe made a settlement payment of $400.0 million in2015 to terminate certain liabilities and obligations, includingfor the Commuted A&E Liabilities, which eliminated the vastmajority of its asbestos-related illness and environmentalimpairment loss and LAE reserves. As a result of the CommutationAgreement, TransRe incurred $38.2 million ($24.8 million after-tax) of unfavorable prior accident year development in the fourthquarter of 2015."

Alleghany Corporation, together with its subsidiaries, engages inproperty and casualty reinsurance and insurance businesses in theUnited States and internationally. Alleghany Corporation wasfounded in 1929 and is based in New York, New York.

ASBESTOS UPDATE: Rogers Continues to Defend 488 Cases at Dec. 31----------------------------------------------------------------Rogers Corporation continues to defend itself against 488asbestos-related product liability cases, according to the theCompany's Form 10-K filing with the U.S. Securities and ExchangeCommission for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2015.

The Company states "We were a defendant in 488 asbestos-relatedproduct liability cases as of December 31, 2015, compared to 440cases as of December 31, 2014, with the change reflecting newcases, dismissals, settlements and other dispositions. We havenever mined, milled, manufactured or marketed asbestos; rather, wemade and provided to industrial users a limited number of productsthat contained encapsulated asbestos, but we stopped manufacturingthese products in the late 1980s. In virtually all of the casesagainst us, the plaintiffs are seeking unspecified damages above ajurisdictional minimum against multiple defendants who may havemanufactured, sold or used asbestos-containing products to whichthe plaintiffs were allegedly exposed and from which theypurportedly suffered injury. Most of these cases are beinglitigated in Illinois, Pennsylvania and Mississippi, however weare also defending cases in other states. We intend to vigorouslydefend these cases, primarily on the basis of the plaintiffs'inability to establish compensable loss as a result of exposure toour products. As of December 31, 2015, the estimated liability andestimated insurance recovery for the ten-year period through 2025were $56.6 million and $53.4 million, respectively.

"The defense and settlement costs of our asbestos-related productliability litigation to date have been substantially covered byinsurance, and we have recorded a $3.2 million accrual for theamount by which estimated asbestos-related expenses exceedasbestos-related insurance coverage over a 10-year projectionperiod."

Rogers Corporation designs, develops, manufactures, and sellsengineered materials and components worldwide. Rogers Corporationwas founded in 1832 and is headquartered in Rogers, Connecticut.

ASBESTOS UPDATE: Tenneco Inc. Faces 500 Suits at Dec. 31--------------------------------------------------------Tenneco Inc. continues to face a docket of less than 500 activeand inactive asbestos-related cases, majority of which are allegedexposure to asbestos in its automotive products, according to theCompany's Form 10-K filing with the U.S. Securities and ExchangeCommission for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2015.

The Company states "In addition, for many years we have been andcontinue to be subject to lawsuits initiated by claimants alleginghealth problems as a result of exposure to asbestos. Our currentdocket of active and inactive cases is less than 500 casesnationwide. A small number of claims have been asserted againstone of our subsidiaries by railroad workers alleging exposure toasbestos products in railroad cars. The substantial majority ofthe remaining claims are related to alleged exposure to asbestosin our automotive products although a significant number of thoseclaims appear also to involve occupational exposures sustained inindustries other than automotive. We believe, based on scientificand other evidence, it is unlikely that claimants were exposed toasbestos by our former products and that, in any event, they wouldnot be at increased risk of asbestos-related disease based ontheir work with these products. Further, many of these casesinvolve numerous defendants, with the number in some casesexceeding 100 defendants from a variety of industries.Additionally, the plaintiffs either do not specify any, or specifythe jurisdictional minimum, dollar amount for damages. As majorasbestos manufacturers and/or users continue to go out of businessor file for bankruptcy, we may experience an increased number ofthese claims. We vigorously defend ourselves against these claimsas part of our ordinary course of business. In future periods, wecould be subject to cash costs or charges to earnings if any ofthese matters are resolved unfavorably to us. To date, withrespect to claims that have proceeded sufficiently through thejudicial process, we have regularly achieved favorableresolutions. Accordingly, we presently believe that theseasbestos-related claims will not have a material adverse impact onour future consolidated financial position, results of operationsor liquidity."

Tenneco Inc. designs, manufactures, and sells clean air and rideperformance products and systems for light vehicle, commercialtruck, off-highway, and other vehicle applications worldwide.Tenneco Inc. was founded in 1987 and is headquartered in LakeForest, Illinois.

ASBESTOS UPDATE: MRC Global Faces 475 PI Suits at Dec. 31---------------------------------------------------------MRC Global Inc. faces an approximate of 475 personal injurylawsuits involving approximately 1,099 claims caused by an allegedexposure to asbestos, according to the Company's Form10-K filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission forthe fiscal year ended December 31, 2015.

The Company states "We are one of many defendants in lawsuits thatplaintiffs have brought seeking damages for personal injuries thatexposure to asbestos allegedly caused. Plaintiffs and their familymembers have brought these lawsuits against a large volume ofdefendant entities as a result of the various defendants'manufacture, distribution, supply or other involvement withasbestos, asbestos-containing products or equipment or activitiesthat allegedly caused plaintiffs to be exposed to asbestos. Theseplaintiffs typically assert exposure to asbestos as a consequenceof third-party manufactured products that the Company'ssubsidiary, MRC Global (US) Inc., purportedly distributed. As ofDecember 31, 2015, we are a named defendant in approximately 475lawsuits involving approximately 1,099 claims. No asbestoslawsuit has resulted in a judgment against us to date, with themajority being settled, dismissed or otherwise resolved.Applicable third-party insurance has substantially covered theseclaims, and insurance should continue to cover a substantialmajority of existing and anticipated future claims. Accordingly,we have recorded a liability for our estimate of the most likelysettlement of asserted claims and a related receivable frominsurers for our estimated recovery, to the extent we believe thatthe amounts of recovery are probable."

MRC Global Inc., through its subsidiaries, distributes pipes,valves, fittings, and related products and services to the energyindustry in the United States, Canada, and internationally. MRCGlobal Inc. was founded in 1921 and is headquartered in Houston,Texas.

ASBESTOS UPDATE: Eaton Corp. Remains Subject of Claims at Dec. 31-----------------------------------------------------------------Eaton Corporation plc remains to be a subject of asbestos claimsfrom historic products which may have contained asbestos,according to the Company's Form 10-K filing with the U.S.Securities and Exchange Commission for the fiscal year endedDecember 31, 2015.

Eaton is subject to a broad range of claims, administrative andlegal proceedings such as lawsuits that relate to contractualallegations, tax audits, patent infringement, personal injuries,antitrust matters, and employment-related matters. Eaton is alsosubject to asbestos claims from historic products which may havecontained asbestos. Historically, significant insurance coveragehas been available to cover costs associated with these claims.Although it is not possible to predict with certainty the outcomeor cost of these matters, the Company believes they will not havea material adverse effect on the consolidated financialstatements.

ASBESTOS UPDATE: BWX Units Continue to Contribute to PI Trust-------------------------------------------------------------BWX Technologies Inc. and its subsidiaries continue to contributeinsurance rights to the Company's asbestos personal injury trust,according to the Company's Form 10-K filing with the U.S.Securities and Exchange Commission for the fiscal year endedDecember 31, 2015.

The Company states "Upon the February 22, 2006 effectiveness ofthe settlement relating to the Chapter 11 proceedings involvingseveral of our subsidiaries, most of our subsidiaries contributedsubstantial insurance rights to the asbestos personal injurytrust, including rights to (1) certain pre-1979 primary and excessinsurance coverages and (2) certain of our 1979-1986 excessinsurance coverage. These insurance rights provided coverage for,among other things, asbestos and other personal injury claims,subject to the terms and conditions of the policies. Thecontribution of these insurance rights was made in exchange forthe agreement on the part of the representatives of the asbestosclaimants, including the representative of future claimants, tothe entry of a permanent injunction, pursuant to Section 524(g) ofthe U.S. Bankruptcy Code, to channel to the asbestos trust allasbestos-related general liability claims against our subsidiariesand former subsidiaries arising out of, resulting from orattributable to their operations, and the implementation ofrelated releases and indemnification provisions protecting thosesubsidiaries and their affiliates from future liability for suchclaims. Although we are not aware of any significant, unresolvedclaims against our subsidiaries and former subsidiaries that arenot subject to the channeling injunction and that relate to theperiods during which such excess insurance coverage related, withthe contribution of these insurance rights to the asbestospersonal injury trust, it is possible that we could haveunderinsured or uninsured exposure for non-derivative asbestosclaims or other personal injury or other claims that would havebeen insured under these coverages had the insurance rights notbeen contributed to the asbestos personal injury trust. Inconjunction with the spin-off of our former Power Generationbusiness, claims and liabilities associated with these asbestospersonal injury, property damage and indirect property damageclaims have been expressly assumed by BWE pursuant to the masterseparation agreement between us and BWE."

ASBESTOS UPDATE: School Told Not to Tell Parents of Asbestos------------------------------------------------------------Katie Clark, writing for Daily Echo, reported that news ofParkfield School's move to Bournemouth Airport being delayed to2017 may only have reached parents in the past few days.

But the school has known about the extent of the asbestos problemsfor months, the Daily Echo and BBC can reveal.

Parkfield opened as a free school in 2013, under the flagshippolicy of former education secretary Michael Gove.

Minutes from the school's finance and audit committee in Januarystate the whole school would not be in the building until Easter2017.

Under the title 'Premises Update', the minutes state: "Proposalshave been put forward to the school with regards to some minortemporary accommodation (for around three weeks), and the EFA haveset aside contingency for any temporary accommodation required.

"The whole school should be in the building by Easter 2017."

It said the contractors were trying to "expedite timelines".

Prior to this, a meeting of the same committee in October 2015,heard further funds were needed from the EFA due to more asbestosbeing found than surveys had previously revealed.

An email in May 2015 between the head teacher and EFA projectdirector also reveals an attempt to conceal the discovery offurther asbestos from parents.

The email from the unnamed EFA project director, quoting part of anewsletter to parents, said: "My understanding of our lastdiscussion on this was that you would not mention asbestos toparents.

"As we discussed the general public do not understand themanagement of asbestos ie that it is usually safe unlessdisturbed."

Mr Conaghan replied: "The asbestos at the site was already in thepublic domain as it had been reported on several years ago by theBournemouth Echo (and is still accessible on the internet)."

The project director replied: "The description of asbestos as'dangerous' is I suggest likely to give cause for concern."

Asbestos works have recently been completed, the Department forEducation, said, with surveys carried out prior to the purchase ofthe site.

They added: "However, as with all surveys it is not alwayspossible to identify all matters until construction works start."

When asked if parents had been told about the extent of theasbestos issues, they said: "We take asbestos in schools veryseriously and comply with all good practice arrangements and willprovide a fully safe environment for teaching and learning in thenew facilities."

They declined to comment directly on the controversial emailexchange, but parents have stated they were unaware of the extentof the problem.

The DfE also refused to say how much the works will cost, but saidfigures would be available once construction is complete.

ASBESTOS UPDATE: Centre City Agrees to Remove Armory Asbestos-------------------------------------------------------------Cherokee County Herald reported that the Centre City Council hasagreed to spend $40,000 for removal of asbestos from the Armorywhich is now undergoing renovation.

Wilkie updated the council on the renovation during the June 28meeting of the council. In a previous meeting, City BuildingInspector Mark Welsh said that asbestos removal was required.

"I went by there," said Wilkie. "We did the study to determine theasbestos in the building, It was determined it was in the roof,some in the window and in the caulking around the windows. MarkWelsh (city building inspector) got that taken care of. The costto remove the asbestos was around $40,000. We had to get a changedwork order on that."

Wilkie reminded the council that the starting amount for therenovation, under the loan agreement was $515,000.

"The bid came in way less than that and even at that and $40,000back, it was $501,000 so we are still low, said Wilkie. "I askedMark if there is anything else he sees that can come up at thispoint and time and he doesn't foresee anything. We hope there isnot going to be anything coming up, but we had to do a changeorder to get that removed."

The council approved the $40,000 for asbestos removal.

Wilkie noted that the project has slowed somewhat in recent weekswith the passing of the architect's wife and other matters."We are back on track!" said Wilkie.

Wilkie was pleased to report that the walking track around EdYarbrough Recreation Park has been paved, a project which the cityhas sought for some time. Other than some minor fill in and dirtwork, that project should be complete, he said.

"Everybody have a good Fourth, be safe and enjoy it," said Wilkie.

ASBESTOS UPDATE: Queensland Teacher Developed Asbestos Cancer-------------------------------------------------------------Jamie McKinnell, writing for News.com.au, reported that the caseof a former Queensland science teacher who was diagnosed withcancer after working with equipment made from asbestos is notisolated, his lawyers say.

The 69-year-old, who has requested not to be named, taught in aToowoomba school for over a decade in the 1970s and 80s.

He said he spent each day "inadvertently breathing in the tickingtime bomb" because Bunsen burner safety mats, which were made fromasbestos, were slowly disintegrating as they were moved around theclassrooms.

He was diagnosed with mesothelioma in March this year.

"Prior to my diagnosis I was very fit and healthy," the father oftwo and grandfather of four said.

"It came as a huge shock to me and my family to be told I hadasbestos cancer after over 35 years as a teacher."

The man also taught on a relief basis in Sunshine Coast schools,where he worked around more equipment made from asbestos.

His claim was settled in May by Slater and Gordon's MartinRogalski, who said the circumstances were not isolated.

"Mesothelioma and other asbestos-related diseases can take anumber of years to develop, which means people who were exposed30-50 years ago still might not have any major symptoms," he said.

The man said during his career, his schools had no ideamesothelioma was associated with the use of asbestos.

Mr Rogalski said he had seen a number of clients who were firstexposed to asbestos in classrooms, hospitals and offices.

ASBESTOS UPDATE: South Georgia Man Loses $4MM Award---------------------------------------------------The Associated Press reported that Georgia's highest court hasreversed a lower court decision, meaning a man who said his cancerwas caused by exposure to asbestos has lost a Ware County juryaward of more than $4 million.

The unanimous decision was announced. It reversed a Georgia Courtof Appeals decision, and found that an expert's testimony that theman's cancer was caused by asbestos exposure while working at atextile company's mill in Waycross should have been excluded bythe trial court.

In a summary of the case, the court said Roy Knight in 2009 wasdiagnosed with malignant mesothelioma, a cancer most commonlycaused by inhaling airborne asbestos fibers.

Knight and his wife had sued Scapa Dryer Fabrics, Inc. Knight hadworked at its Waycross mill, doing sheet metal work in the late1960s and early 1970s.

ASBESTOS UPDATE: Widow Pleads Help to Secure Justice for Husband----------------------------------------------------------------Braintree & Witham Times reported that a widow from Grays whobattled for years against industrial air pollution in Essex isasking for help getting justice for her husband who contractedasbestos cancer at work.

Sheena Nelson, who lives on London Road, has campaigned for morethan 20 years against chemical omissions from nearby detergentfactories.

In a cruelly ironic twist of fate, her husband Reginald Nelsondied just before Christmas last year from mesothelioma, the fatalcancer caused by poisonous asbestos dust.

It is likely that Reg, who lived and worked in Grays his wholeadult life, was exposed to the dust while working as a carpenterfor the construction and engineering firm SC Sanders.

The firm, which closed in 2006, was located on the London Road formore than 50 years.

Mrs Nelson said that Reg and other workers at the firm knew theywere dealing with materials containing asbestos in the workshopbut didn't confront their employers at the time.

"When Reg said how concerned he was 10 years ago, I told him notto worry, any health problems would have shown up years ago," MrsNelson said.

"How wrong I was. This type of cancer takes years to develop andcame back to destroy him in his retirement.

"All he'd ever done was to work hard in a job he loved," she said."He was the love of my life.

"We were married for nearly 35 years. Three months after thecancer was diagnosed, he was gone."

Mr Nelson worked at SC Sanders between 1953 and 1978, mainlyrepairing woodwork in the workshop. Brian Gibbons and Ron Brownwere two colleagues.

Now law firm Fieldfisher is looking for witnesses who may alsohave worked at Sanders who could provide information on workingconditions that could help achieve a settlement for Mrs Nelsonfrom the firm's former insurers.

"Just before he died, I told him how sorry I was I hadn't listenedto his worries.

His last words to me were, 'it doesn't matter, love'. But it does.

"He was a gentle, decent man taken away so unkindly," she added.

ASBESTOS UPDATE: Widows Battles Legal Action Against ACC--------------------------------------------------------Shannon Gillies, writing for Otago Daily Times, reported that anOamaru woman who said she watched her husband die of an asbestos-related illness is supporting another widow who is battling to getrecognition of the pain she and her husband went through as heslowly died from oesophageal cancer.

Francie Rangi's husband, James, a former employee of the oldOamaru Hospital, died from metastatic small cell lung cancer(liver and bone) in 1997 aged 50.

Mrs Rangi contacted the ODT to say she fully supported LoisGilchrist, of Oamaru, who was taking legal action against ACC toget it to accept that her partner Rodney Gilchrist's cancer waslinked to the asbestos he was exposed to during 21 years workingat the hospital and later as the caretaker on site when thefacility was undergoing demolition.

Mrs Rangi's husband worked in the Oamaru Hospital's boiler houseas a boilerman for 20 years.

"He got sick in 1995 and went through lots of diagnoses untilfinally in 1996 it was proven to be asbestosis," she said.

She tried to get compensation from the Southern District HealthBoard, but dropped the case when she was advised she might notwin.

She said she wanted to offer Mrs Gilchrist support in what shebelieved would be a long and arduous journey.

Her own fight was "mind-boggling" at the time and she had only gotthrough it with the support of family and her lawyer.

"Without the help of my family I don't think I could have done it.I didn't know where to start.

"It took me about a year to get myself around most things. I had agood lawyer that helped me.

"It's all coming back and now giving support to Lois and goingthrough documents together, brings back a load of memories and wehave a cry together."

She was working on creating a list of people who worked at thehospital and recently died to find out if their deaths could belinked to asbestos exposure.

"It's a killer. I'm wondering how many other wives are out therewho have lost their husbands to an [asbestos]-related disease."

She produced a letter dated 1997 from the then Department ofLabour to Serco Health, that said during an investigation into aserious harm accident, loose asbestos was noted in the boilerhouse.

The letter's author said a lack of action over several yearsplaced staff at risk and might have caused Mr Rangi's illness.

When contacted, Serco Health was unable to comment immediately.The Southern District Health Board said it would respond within 20working days.

ASBESTOS UPDATE: Isle of Man Union Calls for Easier Payouts-----------------------------------------------------------Ellan Vannin, writing for BBC News, reported that a Manx unionwants a change in the law to make it easier for asbestos-relatedcancer patients to claim compensation.

A spokesman from Unite said it was easier to get a pay-out in theEngland because of technical legal reasons.

It follows the case of a family from Douglas who fought for threeyears on behalf of Peter Quirk.

The 74-year-old died in 2014 after contracting mesothelioma due tobeing exposed to asbestos while working for Heron & Brearley.Mesothelioma is an aggressive cancer which affects the lungs andabdomen.

Unite's regional officer Eric Holmes said: "Hospital figures show[asbestos] has caused the death of eight people on the island inthe past five years.

"We think [compensation] schemes which apply in the UK should alsoapply in the Isle of Man.

"Mr Quirk is the only Unite union member on the island who hasever successfully claimed."

Kevin Quirk said he had been determined to continue his father'scampaign after his death.

"At the time my dad's company was called Okell's Brewery -- I takemy hat off to Heron & Brearley for admitting liability becausewhen dad came into contact with asbestos, no-one had a clue abouthow lethal it was.

"Nowadays a worker would have to wear breathing equipment andprotective clothing but this it was about 40 or 50 years ago -- mydad had to clean out a boiler lined with three different types ofthe substance.

"It's nice to know that something he started has now had asuccessful outcome because this is not a pleasant disease at all -- it restricts your breathing and it crushes your lungs."

Chris Brooks from Manx law firm M&P Legal said there are a numberof reasons why it is harder to bring a claim against a formeremployer in the Isle of Man than in England.

He added: "The process here is longer and it is not as easy toguarantee a successful outcome -- if you have a very complicatedcase then you may not be able to recover anything."

ASBESTOS UPDATE: Citizens Concerned Over Asbestos in Braughning---------------------------------------------------------------Hertfordshire Mercury reported that concerns have been raised overasbestos on a path.

Bridleway 14 in Braughing had the hazardous material buried underthe surface in the 1970s.

However, over the years, it has risen, and there are now fears itposes a health risk.

One member of the public, who did not want to be named, said: "Thepath used to be used for horses, and they closed it off in theend, but people can still walk down it.

"There are airborne fibres, and in some cases, that is when theyare the most lethal.

"I took a walk one day, and the amount of asbestos isunbelievable. It is a serious health issue.

"It was put there many years ago, and all came to the surface.It's really bad."

The overgrown bridleway, which is near Pentlow Hill, has a gateeither end -- but the resident is concerned people can stillaccess it.

"People are aware," he said.

"People will still use it, because you can get to it from gardens.

"The problem with asbestos is it's airborne, particles can travelfor hundreds of metres.

"The council told us what was happening, many months ago."

Hertfordshire County Council has been to the site to examine theasbestos.

The Mercury understands it will remove the material in due course-- but this is taking a while.

Parish councillor Graham Frary told the Mercury: "Some asbestoswas put on path by a farmer, probably in the 1970s, when that sortof thing was perfectly legal, and it's been there ever since.

"It was originally buried, but over time it has come to thesurface.

"It has been reported to highways at the county council, and theyexamined it and came to the conclusion that it was a potentialhazard.

"As a precaution, they said they wanted to remove it.

"They tried to remove it from the surface, but found it was moreextensive than they thought.

"The only solution will be to excavate the whole pathway. It'sgoing to take a while."

A Hertfordshire County Council spokesman said: "HertfordshireCounty Council's Rights of Way Service is in the process ofgathering quotes for the capping of the historic asbestos onBraughing bridleway 14, which involves both constructionregulations and an Environment Agency consultation, so hopefullythis work can be completed in the next few months.

"We will ensure that the asbestos is dealt with safely and willpose no risk to the public."

ASBESTOS UPDATE: Drop in 2015 Asbestos Claims Costs Not a Trend---------------------------------------------------------------Rob Lenihan, writing for Business Insurance, reported that thedollar amount per claim of asbestos-related liabilities forcompanies fell 35% in 2015, after nearly doubling four yearsearlier, according to a report by National Economic ResearchAssociates Inc.

However, the Washington-based economic consultancy's annual reviewof Securities and Exchange Commission filings, released in May,also found that the number of claims resolved and the averagedismissal rates rose, while the number of claims pending declined.

In contrast, resolution values rose roughly 75% in 2011 andremained steady for the next three years.

Lucy Allen, senior vice president and mass torts & productliability practice chair at NERA and a co-author of the report,said it was difficult to determine the cause for the striking dropin the dollar amount.

"It may be the sign of a new trend, which would be good for thedefendants in that the dollars are going down" she said, "Or itcould be that they're just clearing out claims that have beensitting there. It looks like a pretty dramatic change, but what'sdriving it, we're not sure."

The firm has been tracking asbestos filings for 15 years, and Ms.Allen said researchers have not seen such a substantial decline inso-called dollars per claim.

The report said that the trend points to a period of relativestability in asbestos litigation, with filings, total indemnityspending and reserves remaining steady. Yet there is someuncertainty about future valuations.

If the drop in average dollars is related to the resolution ofolder claims, the report said, it may not project a future trendin values for recently filed claims.

"Whether the lower average values observed in 2015 will apply tothe more recent filings going forward is not known," the reportsaid.

Total indemnity payments fell 15% but remained within thehistorical range.

The report attributed a significant decline in filings between2004 and 2007 to a reduction in nonmalignant cases. So, thecurrent filing activity likely represents malignant diseaseclaims, such as mesothelioma and lung and other cancers, alongwith some remaining nonmalignant claims.

Though the disease mix is not known, the flat trend in filingssince 2007 mirrors stable estimates in the annual incidence ofmesothelioma over this period as reported by the National CancerInstitute's Surveillance, Epidemiology and End Results program,which provides information on cancer incidence and survival in theUnited States.

The NERA study analyzed data from more than 150 asbestosdefendant's SEC filings from 2001 to 2015.

ASBESTOS UPDATE: Shipwright Dies After Exposured to Asbestos------------------------------------------------------------Gloucestershire Live reported that a retired shipwright who wasexposed to asbestos during his 40-year career died from anindustrial disease, a coroner has ruled.

In a statement written when he knew he was terminally ill he said:"I commenced an apprenticeship with the firm and worked for themintermittently until I retired.

Two armed men arrested by armed police in Bath Road in Cheltenham

Could the M5 Junction 10 upgrade be finally on the way?

"I was responsible for maintaining wooden sections of vessels,cutting asbestos sheets to size.

"When asbestos lagging was removed I was exposed to the dust andmy overalls would be covered in asbestos.

"There were no precautions and I also worked in undergroundtunnels where I was also exposed to asbestos."

Woman who wrote racist pub sign now has 'deep regrets'

Assistant coroner Caroline Saunders said: "Mr Armstrong beganhaving breathing problems in 2013 and went to see his GP.

He was admitted to Gloucestershire Royal Hospital for 10 days andthen Bristol Royal Infirmary.

"He was diagnosed with mesothelioma," she added.

Mesothelioma is an incurable cancer of the lung for which the onlyknown cause is asbestos exposure.

A consultant at Gloucestershire Royal Hospital said that a chestX-Ray showed signs of exposure to asbestos and a CT scan revealeda malignant tumour in the lungs and bronchial pneumonia.

Mr Armstrong died at his home on January 26 and the assistantcoroner concluded that death was due to an industrial disease

ASBESTOS UPDATE: Asbestos-Related to Most Common Kidney Cancer--------------------------------------------------------------Tim Povtak, writing for Asbestos.com, reported that exposure toasbestos may lead to renal cell carcinoma, the most common type ofkidney cancer, an Italian study shows.

The link to kidney cancer adds to the horrific history ofasbestos, a substance definitively recognized as a cause ofmesothelioma, lung cancer and a variety of other respiratoryillnesses.

In the past, a handful of other cancers were inconclusively linkedto asbestos exposure. However, the research team at the Universityof Pavia in Italy made its case for asbestos as a probable causeof renal cell carcinoma.

"The findings did surprise me. It was something I had notsuspected before," Stefano Candura, Pavia professor and leadauthor of the study, told Asbestos.com. "This was a case report ona controversial issue. It may imply that asbestos is a multitargetcarcinogen."

The case involved a 76-year-old man with seven years ofoccupational exposure in a factory, where his duties includedcutting asbestos cement panels with an electric saw.

Doctors diagnosed him with kidney cancer and removed the diseasedorgan. Fourteen months later, he died of peritoneal mesothelioma,a cancer which begins in the lining of the abdomen.

It is a rare, aggressive cancer, and the second most common formof mesothelioma. Peritoneal mesothelioma is diagnosed in fewerthan 500 people annually in the U.S.

"Asbestos might be involved in the causation of bothmalignancies," Candura wrote in the study. "A causal role ofoccupational asbestos exposure in the genesis of kidney cancer issupported by several case-control and cohort studies."

The Italian study marks the second time scientific literatureincludes a reported case associating kidney cancer and peritonealmesothelioma. It's a rare combination. A Japanese study firstnoted the relationship in 2007.

Although it is not unusual for peritoneal mesothelioma tometastasize and invade abdominal organs, the study shows there wasno evidence of metastasis involving the diseased kidney.

Some studies have included an association with exposure to severalindustrial chemicals. Asbestos is mentioned by someepidemiologists.

Many previous patient autopsies have shown the presence ofasbestos fibers in the urinary tracts. The kidneys of patientsheavily exposed to asbestos contained large amounts of themineral's fibers.

"It is conceivable that the two malignancies share some etiologicfactors," the authors of the Italian study wrote. "Asbestos is themost likely candidate. While the role of this agent in thecausation of mesothelioma is well established, evidence for acarcinogenic effect on the kidney is conflicting."

Candura also believes the asbestos and renal carcinoma link couldhave legal implications with occupational-related compensationclaims and life expectancy predictions.

"There should be greater awareness that peritoneal mesotheliomaand renal carcinoma may occur concurrently," the authors wrote."The presence of MM [malignant mesothelioma] may in fact preventaccurate recognition of the concomitant kidney neoplasm, and viceversa."

ASBESTOS UPDATE: Newport Man Warns Other of Asbestos Exposure-------------------------------------------------------------South Wales Argus reported that Keith Gardner's health is beingdestroyed by a cancer caused by exposure to asbestos -- and hewants to warn others of the dangers.

Diagnosed late last year with incurable mesothelioma -- also knownas asbestosis -- the 66-year-old from Newport cannot now cope withthe slightest incline without suffering severe breathlessness.

A carpenter and joiner by trade, he hoped to work until he was 70,but now finds the simplest tasks difficult.

He is speaking about the disease and how it affects him to markthe charity Mesothelioma UK's Action Mesothelioma Day.

"Lots of people worked with asbestos before its problems anddangers came to light," said Mr Gardner, who lives in the city'sShaftesbury area and until last December had worked for almost 50years, either for firms or self-employed.

"I didn't work with asbestos all the time, but back then we didn'tget goggles, masks and gloves. We'd cut it, or rip it up with ourhands.

"I think a lot more will come to light about asbestos, and a lotmore people will pay the price of being exposed to it.

"It's still there in lots of buildings, and people must be mademore aware of how dangerous it can be."

After noticing severe breathlessness on holiday in Devon lastyear, Mr Gardner saw his GP and subsequently underwent x-rays,tests and biopsies in hospital.

He had several litres of fluid drained from his lung cavity and,after being diagnosed, underwent four courses of chemotherapy.

"It hasn't got any worse, but I'm still very restricted in what Ican do. I can walk on the flat a little bit, but hills areimpossible," he said.

Mesothelioma often does not develop until decades after exposureto asbestos.

South Wales law firm Hugh James acts for many victims, helpingsecure financial support for families. It has pledged ú5,000 toMesothelioma UK to support a programme to fund a specialist cancernurse in Wales.

It also sponsors an event in Swansea, raising awareness ofasbestos dangers, run by Asbestos Awareness and Support Cymru.

Richard Green, specialist asbestos solicitor at Hugh James, seesfirst hand "the devastating impact the disease has not only on thevictims but their families, who face the dreadful prospect oflosing a loved one."

"Mesothelioma remains an incurable disease at present and it isimportant we highlight this, and support those who suffer from thecondition as best we can," he said.

ASBESTOS UPDATE: NY High Court Rules on Joint Duty to Warn----------------------------------------------------------Insurance Journal reported that New York's highest court hasupheld court judgments against a steam valve manufacturer, citingits failure to warn of the dangers of using its valves withgaskets and packing that contain asbestos.

The Court of Appeals rejected Crane Co.'s argument that it isn'tresponsible for warning about the dangers of other companies'asbestos products.

Widows of a former Navy boiler technician and an ex-pipefitter ata General Motors plant who died from asbestos-related cancer afteryears of exposure changing gaskets and packing won jury awards of$8 million and $3 million.

The court said the duty to warn applies to the "known andforeseeable joint use of its product and another product that isnecessary to allow the manufacturer's product to work asintended."

ASBESTOS UPDATE: Calls to Remove Asbestos from Schools Intensify----------------------------------------------------------------Eleanor Busby, writing for TES.com, reported that Sue Stephens, aprimary teacher for three decades, has died of mesotheliomaCalls for the government to remove asbestos from all schools andcolleges have been stepped up following the death of a teacher.

Sue Stephens, who was a primary school teacher in Buckinghamshirefor almost 30 years, died of the asbestos-related cancermesothelioma.

Her daughter, Lucie Stephens, has launched a petition calling forthe phased removal of asbestos from schools by 2028, which hasalready received thousands of signatures.

On Action Mesothelioma Day 2016, the Joint Union AsbestosCommittee (JUAC) is asking the government to prioritise theremoval of asbestos from all schools and colleges.

A life cut short

Kevin Courtney, acting general secretary of the NUT teachingunion, said: "Yet another teacher's life has been tragically cutshort by this dreadful, and entirely preventable, disease.

"Nothing can be done to put right past asbestos exposure, but wemust do more to protect future generations of schoolchildren andstaff.

"The government must now set out a long-term strategy for thephased removal of asbestos from all schools."

Dr Mary Bousted, general secretary of the ATL teaching union,said: "It's scandalous that every year teachers and support staffare dying from asbestos related illnesses because they have beenexposed to asbestos in school.

"The government must listen and start a phased removal of allasbestos in schools so that no more children or teachers areexposed to asbestos and risk dying from this entirely preventabledisease."

Buildings boost

A Department for Education spokesperson said: "Nothing is moreimportant than the health and safety of children and staff in ourschools -- that's why we are investing GBP23 billion in schoolbuildings by 2021. This will help ensure asbestos is managedsafely and that the amount in school buildings continues to reduceover time.

"Last year we published a comprehensive review of asbestos inschools and we are implementing its findings in full -- we arecontinuing to work with the Health and Safety Executive and otherson this issue to transform the way in which we collect informationon asbestos to better our understanding."

ASBESTOS UPDATE: US Orders School to Pay $193K to Janitor---------------------------------------------------------The Associated Press reported that a Detroit-area school districthas been ordered to pay $193,000 to a janitor who said she waspunished when she complained about asbestos.

Theresa Ely said she feels vindicated by the U.S. OccupationalSafety and Health Administration, which ordered back pay and othercompensation.

The government said Ely complained in 2012 about exposure toasbestos while cleaning floor tiles at Annapolis High School inDearborn Heights and suffered layoffs, extra work and a lack ofpay raises. She also was reprimanded after filing complaints withstate and federal regulators.

"No worker should be harassed or punished for reporting unsafeworking conditions," Ken Nishiyama Atha, OSHA's regionaladministrator in Chicago, said in a statement.

OSHA said Dearborn Heights District No. 7 feared a loss ofstudents if Ely's concerns became public.

"I feel very good. ... The money is great, but it's not what Ineeded most," Ely told the Detroit Free Press.

If it disagrees with the OSHA finding, the district has 30 days toseek a hearing with an administrative law judge.

Superintendent John Fazer did not immediately return a call andemail seeking comment. He told the Free Press earlier this yearthat he doesn't believe there was any asbestos exposure, althoughhe wasn't with the district at the time.

ASBESTOS UPDATE: Vietnam War Asbestos Exposure Blamed for Death---------------------------------------------------------------Deidre Mussen, writing for Stuff.co.nz, reported that on his deathbed, Phillip Taylor-Meihana cursed his Vietnam War army servicefor causing his terminal asbestos-related cancer.

She will plead her husband's case in front of the WaitangiTribunal's Military Veterans Inquiry in Canterbury in her last-ditch bid to get compensation for his death.

Veterans' Affairs refused his death-bed bid for lump sumcompensation, disputing his claims that he was exposed to thekiller fibres in Vietnam when his platoon destroyed asbestos-linedammunition bunkers.

"This is for justice for my husband," Meihana said. "He felt hewas cheated with this bloody cancer. He was a fighter and I'mfighting for him, but everything has come to a big brick wall."

In February last year, the 67-year-old Napier man was diagnosedwith an aggressive form of mesothelioma, a cancer caused byinhaling asbestos that was attacking his abdominal lining andorgans, and died only 6-1/2 weeks later.

He had given up work six months earlier because of healthproblems, but doctors wrongly diagnosed reflux.

The family and his doctors were initially mystified because noneof his past jobs were linked to asbestos exposure, such asconstruction, building or working in an asbestos factory.

Taylor-Meihana drove earthmoving trucks in his youth beforejoining the army in 1969. He was posted to Vietnam two weeks aftermarrying Colleen.

After leaving the army in 1977, he was a Corrections officer inprisons for 27 years before moving to Australia in 2004 to work incoal mines.

His Auckland specialist suggested it was "possible" his yearsworking in Australian mines from 2004 exposed him to asbestos,despite his family disputing that finding because he drove air-conditioned trucks there and had no contact with asbestos.

Also, diseases linked to asbestos typically surfaced 30 to 40years after someone's exposure to it, which fitted with hisVietnam service.

COMRADE'S EVIDENCE

Finally, his army platoon sergeant, John Mangakahia, seemed tosolve the mystery.

The 79-year-old reminded his dying mate that their platoon, aspart of the 4th RAR/NZ Anzac Battalion, had been ordered todestroy ammunition bunkers around Australia's military base in NuiDat in Vietnam when they withdrew from the area in 1971.

Other Vietnam veterans and friends of Taylor-Meihana investigatedand confirmed that ammunition bunkers were commonly lined withasbestos for fireproofing.

"The ammunition bunkers were a typical army-type construction,which I am now aware were asbestos-lined along with the concreteside walls," Mangakahia wrote in his submission to Veterans'Affairs to support Taylor-Meihana's compensation claim, whichwould be presented to the tribunal in Kaiapoi.

They drilled into the bunkers and blew them up, before armyvehicles crushed down the debris.

"I know that there was a lot of dust and dirt and rubbish flyingin the air," Mangakahia recalled.

He documented details of their actions at Nui Dat in a diary socan prove their work on the ammunition bunkers, but no-one knewabout asbestos at the time, he said.

Meihana said her husband rarely spoke of Vietnam until his dyingdays, and remembered destroying the bunkers once reminded.

"He told me he wore the same dusty overalls for several weekswhile destroying those bunkers. He could have easily inhaledasbestos."

OFFICIALS CITE LACK OF PROOF

But Veterans' Affairs rejected his claim for a terminal lump sumpayment, saying there was no proof the bunkers contained asbestos.

"Veterans' Affairs has obtained information from Department ofVeterans' Affairs Australia (DVA) that confirms it is veryunlikely that ammunition bunkers contained asbestos, but could notrule it out entirely," it wrote in its refusal letter.

"Unless Mr Mangakahia can provide evidence to support hiscontention about the asbestos claim, Veterans' Affairs can notplace any reliance on this point in his declaration."

Under the Veterans' Support Act 2014, veterans and their familiescan claim pensions or compensation for various asbestos-relateddiseases, including mesothelioma.

In contrast, ACC accepted Taylor-Meihana's claim after his deaththat his terminal illness was from serving in Vietnam.

However, it declined to pay his family lump sum compensationbecause it received his claim nine days before death, which wasinsufficient time to process it.

Lump sums were granted only if a person's claim was acceptedbefore death, but it paid accidental death entitlements and somefuneral expenses, an ACC spokeswoman said.

Meihana feels most aggrieved at Veterans' Affairs for failing tosupport her husband's claim years after he "put his body on theline" for New Zealand.

"They were sent to Vietnam and no-one thought about theconsequences. [Veterans' Affairs] is just turning a blind eye toeverything.

"I think it's very very unfair the way they've treated me.

"My husband died an angry man. Me and my kids know he's notresting in peace and he won't settle till we get answers.

"That's the type of man he was. He'll be watching us 24/7."

ASBESTOS UPDATE: Asbestos-Hit High School to Close Permanently--------------------------------------------------------------BBC News reported that a school which shut after asbestos wasfound and a removal worker later died, will close permanently.

A council-commissioned report in 2012 found the asbestos posed apotential health risk at Cwmcarn High School.

It re-opened in 2014 but its numbers have halved and governorssaid circumstances the school has been "unprecedented".

A pre-inquest hearing was told a cut electric cable was foundwhere the worker died in 2013.

In a letter to parents, governors said the school would close intwo years.

Gary Thomas, chairman of the governors, said: "Faced with thehalving of the school roll in the last five years, which continuesto fall, combined with the number of learners in the South Islwynregion also falling and set to fall further, this makes the schoolunsustainable."

Closure plans will begin in September.

ASBESTOS UPDATE: Madison County Still #1 in Asbestos Filings------------------------------------------------------------Ann Maher and Jessica Karmasek, writing for Madison-St. ClairRecord, reported that Madison County remains the top jurisdictionin the country for asbestos cases, according to 2015 and firstquarter data presented at a recent asbestos litigation conference.

By comparison, the second busiest jurisdiction in Baltimore City,Md. saw about 45 percent fewer cases than Madison County.

Also included in a list of top 18 courts was neighboring St. Louiswhich took sixth place, Cook County in eighth and St. Clair Countyin 10th.

Filings for 2015 and the first quarter of 2016 show Madison Countywith 1,351 cases; Baltimore with 737; St. Louis with 285; CookCounty with 217 and St. Clair County with 115.

Analysis was conducted by KCIC, a consulting firm providingcorporate risk management services to policyholders and theirlegal counsel, as well as Bates White, an economic consulting firmoffering analysis and expert testimony services to law firms,Fortune 500 companies and government agencies. Both are based inWashington, D.C.

Their findings show Edwardsville-based Gori Julian with a secondplace ranking nationally in a list of top 20 plaintiff firms,after the number one national asbestos filer, Baltimore-basedPeter Angelos.

Gori Julian has added offices in St. Louis, New Orleans and LosAngeles.

The Alton-based Simmons firm, which merged with New York attorneysto form what is now known as Simmons Hanly Conroy, has offices infive other locations outside Madison County: St. Louis, Chicago,New York, San Francisco and El Segundo, Calif.

Simmons, which has been a national leader in asbestos filings, wasfourth place on the list of top 20. Other firms that file inMadison County that appeared on the list were: Maune Raichle ofSt. Louis in seventh place; SWMK of St. Louis in 10th place;Shrader and Associates in Glen Carbon in 11th place; Flint Law ofEdwardsville in 14th place.

Angelos's firm filed 640 cases in 2015, however, data was notavailable for the firm's first quarter filings.

Madison County asbestos filers and filings:

Gori Julian: 477 in 2015; 70 in first quarter. Simmons: 371 in 2015; 72 in first quarter. Maune Raichle: 190 in 2015; 56 in first quarter. SWMK: 121 in 2015; 27 in first quarter. Shrader: 107 in 2015; 13 in first quarter. Flint: 77 in 2015; nine in first quarter.

The data was presented at the Perrin Mid-Atlantic asbestoslitigation conference on May 3.

Also presented were the average number of companies targeted inasbestos filings, with many firms suing a triple-digit number ofdefendants.

According to data compiled by KCIC and Bates White, the topaverage number of defendants in lawsuits came by way of WestVirginia-based Segal Law, with 283. Firm leader Scott Segal is thehusband of state Supreme Court Justice Robin Davis.

Elizabeth Hanke, vice president of KCIC, is considered an expertin insurance allocation modeling. According to her bio, shespecializes in leveraging relational database technology to solvecomplex disputes in litigation and settlement.

Hanke said the figures were gathered through KCIC's claimsadministration services.

"The first step in the process is KCIC accepts service of thosecomplaints on behalf of our clients. Each day we enter thecomplaints served into a database. Fields we enter include filingdate, all defendants named (as they are named on the complaint),disease, claim alleged, plaintiff firms, jurisdiction and whateverclaimant personal information is included in the complaint --typically name, address, birthday, etc.

"This information remains in the complaint database, then the datais pushed out to a client specific database, which notifies eachclient's counsel of the new complaint. From that point on, theclient and their counsel continue to use the client-specificdatabase to manage the claim."

Hanke said the data in KCIC's complaint database is all publiclyavailable data.

"Because of the number of clients we have, our complaint databasehas a very large percent of all asbestos complaints filed in theU.S.," she noted.

"While we know we do not have all complaints, based on a fewcomparisons to known datasets, we estimate we have between 90 and95 percent of all asbestos filings in the U.S."

Hanke said KCIC's dataset grows each day as it continues toprocess complaints and as it gets new clients.

"It's a live dataset, so to speak," she said, adding that itcompiled the statistics at its clients' request.

"As asbestos defendants, they were interested in looking at thefilings data sliced a variety of ways," she explained. "As apractical matter, they typically focus on just the complaintswhere they are named, but reviewing a bigger data set of where thefilings are, who is making them, how many defendants are named,etc., gives them additional insight into the problem they arefacing."

Plaintiffs' strategy

Nina Caroselli, executive vice president and chief operatingofficer of New Hampshire-based RiverStone Resource, said thesystem of naming so many defendants is downright puzzling.

"That's really a question for the plaintiffs firms," she said ofthe approach. "But I don't understand the strategy myself."

Especially given that some defendants have a dismissal rate ashigh as 90 percent, she noted.

Caroselli's RiverStone group manages claims and liabilities forinsurance companies. She presented the KCIC and Bates Whitefigures at the Perrin conference.

"From my perspective, asbestos litigation is extremelyinefficient," said Caroselli, an attorney with more than 30 yearsof experience in the insurance industry and private litigationpractice.

Not to mention costly.

"There are costs associated with litigation for both sides," shesaid. "From a defense perspective, there's a cost to retaincounsel, respond to discovery, sometimes participate indepositions, file motions to dismiss, etc. All of it has a cost."

Then factor in nearly 300 defendants named in a single lawsuit.

"You're not just talking about the attorneys' time, but the filingfees in various courts, the money paid to experts, courtreporters," Caroselli explained. "All of these costs are incurredin order to get a defendant dismissed from these cases."

And in the end, naming so many defendants may not be worth it forplaintiffs, she said.

"I think it can extend the time it takes the matter to getresolved," Caroselli said.

It also, depending on the jurisdiction, can expose plaintiffs to alengthier deposition.

"When you have that many (defendants) named in litigation and allof them want to be at the plaintiff's deposition to hear what theplaintiff remembers regarding the product, etc., it can take a lotof time," she explained.

Caroselli said her group has a number of policyholders that aredefendants in asbestos litigation. But many experience dismissalrates of 50 to 90 percent, often being dismissed from cases inwhich they never should have been named in the first place.

"It really shows how inefficient asbestos litigation is," shesaid.

"I'm very interested, and so is my company, in engaging in aconversation with all those involved to see if there's a differentway to manage these claims."

Caroselli said she has reached out to all sides and is "hopeful"they will find some common ground.

Bates White1300 Eye St., N.W.Washington, DC 20005

Madison County157 N MainEdwardsville, IL 62025

ASBESTOS UPDATE: Derbyshire Family In Search for Info on Death--------------------------------------------------------------Rachel Sloper, writing for Derby Telegraph, reported that thefamily of a man who died from lung cancer have made a heartfeltplea for his former colleagues to come forward as witnesses to hisworking conditions -- which they believe exposed him to asbestos.

John Foster, known as Jack, who lived in Shardlow for more than 50years, died aged 87. His family believe his lung cancer was causedby prolonged exposure to asbestos when working at the formerBritish Celanese acetate factory in Spondon. His widow, Mavis, anddaughters are now trying to trace his former colleagues in thehope that they can fill in the blanks about his workingconditions.

Mr Foster, who started as an apprentice at British Celanese in the1940s, worked for the majority of his working life as a fitter atthe company, which has also been known as Courtaulds, Acordis and,most recently, Acetate Products Limited.

Hayley Hawkins, a solicitor from Hugh James, said: "With miles andmiles of asbestos-lagged pipes known to have been at the site inSpondon, we understand that Mr Foster was most likely involved inthe removing and applying of the asbestos lagging and this is whenexposure could have occurred. We are therefore trying to help MrsFoster to find former colleagues who may have worked with herhusband in order to understand more about the working conditionsand how he would have been exposed to this deadly material."

ASBESTOS UPDATE: Crane Co. To Pay Millions for Asbestos Products----------------------------------------------------------------Rose Bouboushian, writing for Courthouse News Service, reportedthat a valve manufacturer must pay millions for failing to warnU.S. Navy and General Motors employees that its ship valves'asbestos-laden gaskets could give them cancer, New York's highcourt ruled.

During and after World War II, the Stamford, Conn.-based Crane Co.sold the U.S. Navy valves for use in high-pressure, high-temperature steam pipe systems on ships.

Crane packaged the valves with bonnet gaskets consisting of anasbestos disc sealed by a layer of rubber, and braided asbestos-based stem packing.

Since those materials eventually needed replacing, Crane marketed"Cranite," an asbestos-based sheet material used to producereplacement gaskets and packing, despite noting in its catalogsissued from 1923 to 1962 that replacements made of other materialswere available.

Indeed, in the 1930s, certain trade associations, some of whichhad Crane-employed members, started publicizing the hazards ofexposure to dust from asbestos-based products.

Though Crane says it learned of the link between asbestos exposureand a type of cancer called mesothelioma in the early 1970s, itnever provided product warnings until at least 1980.

After a former Navy boiler technician, Ronald Dummitt, wasdiagnosed with pleural mesothelioma in April 2010, he and his wifeDoris sued Crane and 67 other defendants for negligence and strictproducts liability in Supreme Court.

Later that year, Gerald Suttner, who worked as a pipefitter amidCrane valves at General Motors' Tonawanda Engine Plant, filed asimilar New York Supreme Court lawsuit with his wife Joann againstCrane and 37 others, after he was also diagnosed with pleuralmesothelioma.

Suttner's wife added a wrongful death claim after he died the nextyear.

A jury ultimately found Crane 99 percent liable in Dummitt's caseand awarded $32 million in damages, but the parties agreed toreduce the damages to $5.5 million for past damages and $2.5million for future pain and suffering, which the AppellateDivision affirmed.

The jury in Suttner's case meanwhile found Crane 4 percent liableand awarded $3 million in damages, and the Supreme Court refusedto set the verdict aside.

The Appellate Division affirmed. Crane appealed both of thecourt's rulings, but the New York Court of Appeals affirmed thelower court's rulings.

"Certainly, Crane's direct distribution and marketing of asbestos-based products were powerful signs of its intent that theseproducts be used with its valves," Judge Sheila Abdus-Salaam wrotefor the seven-judge panel. "Likewise, Crane's promotion ofasbestos-containing packing and gaskets as suitable for use inhigh-temperature, high-pressure systems showed that Craneendorsed, as a matter of practical necessity, the joint use of itsproduct and asbestos-laden products that it had promoted."

Crane had a duty to warn Dummitt about the dangers of asbestosdust, the ruling states.

"Indeed, having recommended such a dangerous use in the valve'sspecifications and originally supplied the asbestos-basedcomponents needed to carry out that perilous activity, Crane couldhardly deny that it was readily foreseeable under thecircumstances that Navy employees like Dummitt would install andreplace asbestos-bearing gaskets, packing and insulation on thevalves," Abdus-Salaam wrote.

The judge later added, "Tellingly, too, Crane promoted asbestos-based gaskets and packing as appropriate for high-pressure, high-temperature services, but it never suggested to its customers thatother materials could be used to seal its valves in such services.Based on this evidence, the jurors could only have concluded thatthe design and mechanics of Crane's valves prevented the valvesfrom operating properly without asbestos-bearing components in thehigh-pressure, high-temperature steam service for which the Navyhad purchased them."

The court also found "no merit" to Crane's claim that it did notbreach the duty to warn Suttner.

Dummitt's attorney, Seth Dymond with Belluck & Fox in New York,said the ruling "reaffirms that product manufacturers have aresponsibility to supply products that are safe for their intendeduse, and those manufacturers that violate the public's trust willbe held accountable for their actions."

"We are extremely pleased that New York will continue to protectthe rights of innocent product users and their families," Dymondadded.

Suttner's attorney, Dennis Harlow with Lipsitz & Ponterio in NewYork, said "The Appellate Division has rejected Crane's primaryargument several times in the past, as have over a dozen New Yorktrial court judges.

"But it's also a really remarkable document," Harlow added, notingthat it is "almost certainly the most significant New York failureto warn decision since at least 1998 and it's a case thatlitigators and academics will be discussing at length for theforeseeable future."

Amicus curiae Product Liability Advisory Council's attorney, JamesBeck with Reed Smith in Philadelphia, said the group is"disappointed that the Court of Appeals allowed yet anotherextension of the already excessive degree of asbestos-relatedliability being allowed under the law."

"There was no proof that the plaintiffs in these cases were everexposed to the products of the defendant held liable," Beck added.

Amici curiae CBS Corp. and General Electric spokespersons KelliRaftery and David Lurie, respectively, declined to comment on theruling.

Neither did amici curiae Business Council of New York State; NewYork State Trial Lawyers Association; The Retired EnlistedAssociation; Pacific Legal Foundation; United Steel; EnvironmentalWorking Group; CBS Corp.; and the United States Chamber ofCommerce.

Crane reported that it reaped $660 million in sales in the firstquarter of 2016 alone.

ASBESTOS UPDATE: Asbestos-related Cancers Cost Canada $2-Bil.-------------------------------------------------------------Tim Povtak, writing for Asbestos.com, reported that the Canadiangovernment spends about $1.7 billion annually on asbestos-relatedcancers stemming from occupational exposure, according to a recentInstitute for Work & Health study.

The investigation did not include cancers from secondhand exposureto asbestos and other cancers caused by asbestos exposure.

"This [number] is really just the tip of the iceberg," Institutefor Work & Health senior scientist Dr. Emile Tompa toldAsbestos.com. "When you see the magnitude of the cost, it makesyou aware there is a need to take action."

Calculations were based on cases diagnosed in 2011 and thoseattributed to only workplace exposure. Tompa believes the costwill be closer to $2 billion annually once non-occupationalasbestos exposure is included as an amendment to the earlierreport.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the Liberal Party ofCanada have pushed for a national asbestos ban despite somereluctance from various special interest groups.

Canada, once one of the world's largest producers of asbestos, nolonger exports the toxic mineral, but it still imports asbestos-containing products, including construction and automotivematerials.

"I think you'll also see an increase in the number of cases for afew more years because of the long latency period with asbestoscancers," Tompa said. "We often think about how much will it costto find substitutes [for asbestos], or how much it will cost tochange production. But the cost of doing nothing is substantiallyhigher."

Price Tag on Asbestos Disease

The report included 2,099 mesothelioma and asbestos-related lungcancer cases from 2011. The average lifetime cost of health care,lost productivity and quality of life for each case was estimatedat $818,000.

The study showed the savings to society if no cases of asbestos-related cancer occurred in a particular year.

"A lot of people focus on financial implications before decisionsare made," Tompa said. "This helps put a price tag on it. Our workhas been well received. It should help the decision-makingprocess."

Direct costs of health care amounted to 11 percent of the totalcost per person. One reason for the low percentage is patients donot live very long. About 20 percent of mesothelioma patients livebeyond two years.

Health-related quality of life, including lost years of life, lossof function from poor health, and human suffering, accounts for 80percent of the cost per person. The calculation compares lifeexpectancies and morbidities of asbestos-related cancers to normalgender and age-specific averages.

"It's hard to put a price tag on the future of people's lives,"Tompa said. "A parent dies because of workplace cancer, and theirchildren's lives can change. The cost to society is difficult tocalculate."

Canadian Organizations Cooperate to Ban Asbestos

The Canadian Cancer Society funded and conducted the study withhelp from the Occupational Cancer Research Centre. The governmentof Ontario funds the Institute for Work & Health, but it remainsan independent, nonprofit organization.

The use of asbestos dropped substantially in recent years, andthere also is considerable pressure on the Canadian government tojoin the 57 other countries that already banned asbestos. Labororganizations are especially vocal.

"Nobody goes to work to die," Canadian Labour Congress (CLC)president Hassan Yussuff told The Globe and Mail recently. "Theunfortunate part of this substance is that's what ends uphappening to people without them having some ability to protectthemselves."

The CLC, which represents dozens of national and internationalunions, asked the government for legislation banning asbestos, anational registry for workers diagnosed with asbestos-relatedconditions and a national registry for all public buildingscontaining asbestos.

Trudeau reiterated his commitment to the ban during a recentCanada's Building Trades Union policy conference in Ottawa.Asbestos remains the leading cause of occupational deaths inCanada and the U.S.

ASBESTOS UPDATE: NSW Compensation Claim Processing Time Halved--------------------------------------------------------------Anna Patty, writing for Sydney Morning Herald, reported that theNew South Wales government has reported the average processingtime for people with insurance claims for dust diseases has fallenfrom 136 to 66 days since it made changes to the scheme last year.Minister for Finance, Services and Property Dominic Perrottet saidthe reforms to Dust Diseases Care, which is part of Insurance &Care NSW, was saving time for victims and their families.

Mr Perrottet said the workers compensation scheme had also met thegovernment's new two-day target for considering and approvingprocessed claims.

"If you are diagnosed with a dust disease, you need certainty, andyou need fast, efficient access to care and assistance -- there isno excuse for bureaucratic delays at such a difficult time," MrPerrottet said.

Karen Banton, widow of asbestos disease advocate Bernie Banton whodied in 2007, said in a government media statement that people whohave been diagnosed with an asbestos-related disease have theirlives turned upside down.

She said timely determination of compensation applications made ahuge difference to people's lives.

"You're not left wondering for weeks on end, so families can havecertainty much faster on their claims outcome," she said.

Mr Perrottet said Dust Diseases Care was also working towardsimproving flexibility and care options for victims.

The initiatives included funding new research into the detectionand treatment of dust diseases, supporting new immunology-focusedmedical treatments offering more choice in medical treatment.

"Many people with occupational dust diseases are elderly and needchoice and control in the way healthcare services are delivered tothem. These reforms are about putting the customer at the centreof decision-making," he said.

"We reformed [Dust Diseases Care] so that it would provide abetter service for victims and their families, and while we havemade huge inroads already, I am determined to continue to improvethe care and support it offers."

"It is a stressful time for applicants and their families,particularly those who have malignant conditions such asmesothelioma or asbestos-related lung cancer," she said.

"A process which has minimised the time for determining anapplication is welcomed because it gives certainty to claimantsand their families about statutory entitlements, includingpayments for medical and other treatment expenses."

NSW Greens MP David Shoebridge said the question was not justwhether claims were being processed faster, but whether genuineclaims were being accepted.

"A reduction in processing times is all well and good but what isfar more important is that the right decision is being made andgenuine claims are being paid," he said.

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